Berlin (AFP)
First clinical trials of a vaccine against the new coronavirus will be launched in Germany by the company BioNTech, based in Mainz, in connection with the American laboratory Pfizer, announced Wednesday the competent federal authority.
It is "only the fourth human trial" in the world of a vaccine against Covid-19, specifies the regulatory authority.
These clinical trials will initially be carried out on 200 healthy volunteers aged 18 to 55, says the Paul Ehrlich Institute (IPE) on its website. Other test phases will be carried out on other volunteers in the coming months
"Human experimentation is an important step on the way to developing safe and effective vaccines against Covid-19 for the population in Germany and beyond," said the IPE.
Clinical trials should also be carried out by Pfizer in the United States, when the green light has been given by the health authorities, indicates for its part BioNTech, specialized until now in the search for treatments against cancer.
These first trials in Germany must consist, according to the IPE, in "determining the general tolerance of the vaccine tested and its capacity to propose an immune response against the pathogenic agent", an RNA virus, which has the particularity to mutate.
Other clinical trials should be carried out in the coming months in Germany by laboratories, estimates the IPE.
About 150 vaccine projects are currently underway around the world against the new coronavirus.
© 2020 AFP