Children as young as 6 will be added to Oxford University’s COVID-19 vaccine study, making it the first time to investigate how children and young adults respond to shots aimed at spreading the deadly to limit bugs.
About 300 children aged 6 to 17 will be included in the study of the AstraZeneca vaccine, reports Reuters.
Earlier tests have shown that the vaccine is safe, but this trial, funded by the British Institute for Health Research, will show whether the shot produces a good immune response in children. About 240 children will be stabbed, reports the BBC, while the rest will get a control shot.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said 267 children have died since the start of the pandemic, accounting for less than 1 percent of total deaths.
The two-dose vaccine has been used worldwide because it is cheaper and easier to distribute than some of the other shots.
AstraZeneca is also working with Oxford to adapt its vaccine for new disease strains as the virus mutates. One study suggested that the company’s vaccine did not protect the South African coronavirus strain.