In this photo illustration, the British multinational pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) logo is seen on a smartphone, with a computer model of the COVID-19 coronavirus in the background.
Budrul Chukrut | SOPA Images | Getty Images
The British GlaxoSmithKline and the French Sanofi said on Monday that they have started a new clinical trial with their protein-based Covid-19 vaccine candidate and aim to reach the final testing phase in the second quarter.
If the results are conclusive, the two drugmakers hope the vaccine will be approved in the fourth quarter after initially targeting the first half of this year.
The move comes after drug manufacturers said in December that their vaccination would be delayed after clinical trials showed an inadequate immune response in older people.
The new trial aims to evaluate the safety, tolerance and immune response of the vaccine in 720 healthy adults in the United States, Honduras and Panama, the companies said.
Sanofi and GSK’s candidate uses the same recombinant protein-based technology as one of Sanofi’s seasonal flu vaccines. This will be accompanied by an additive, a drug that acts as a stimulant for the shot, made by GSK.
The study will test two injections given 21 days apart.