Turkey’s VLP Covid-19 vaccine ‘to be available in months’

A VIRUS-LIKE particle (VLP) vaccine against the coronavirus which is currently in development in Turkey, will be ready for use by the end of the year, professor Hasan Mandal, head of the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (Tübitak) said on Monday.

Tübitak oversees the collective and individual efforts of scientists at Turkish universities who are striving to prepare the country’s first vaccine against the disease. Mr Mandal said two locallymade drugs will be available in August.

Phase 3 trials of the VLP vaccine will start in August, Mr Mandal said.

He said two other Covid19

vaccines were expected to be ready by the end of the year and all had the potential for high efficacy against different coronavirus variants.

Mr Mandal said the Phase I trials of the VLP vaccine would be completed this weekend.

VLP vaccine works by mimicking the coronavirus. Currently, there are four VLP vaccine candidates in the world.

“This vaccine will give protection both against the conventional, early strain of the virus from Wuhan, China, to new variants. Phase II trials will focus on variants, particularly the British variant,” Mr Mandal said.

“An inactive vaccine is currently undergoing Phase I trials after approval and tests are being held at the Ankara City Hospital”, Mr Mandal added.

“We also have an adenovirus vaccine, similar to Russia’s Sputnik V. It has innovative features providing high efficiency and is currently being assessed by the Health Ministry before clinical trials.

He said scientists in the country were also working on two different molecules, originally used in the treatment of other diseases, to use against the coronavirus. “They will start Phase II trials this week,” he said. One of them is ribavirin, developed at Ankara University while the other is Montelukast

developed by scientists from Bahçeşehir University in İstanbul.

“We observed that both of them were more efficient compared to current treatment methods. We hope they will be put into public use in August,” he said.

Ribavirin, also known as tribavirin, is an antiviral medication used in hepatitis C treatment, as well as other viral hemorrhagic fevers. A study in Turkey found that it was able to prevent infections in people exposed to the coronavirus, and reduce infectiousness of Covid-19.

Montelukast, a molecule used in the routine treatment of asthma, has strong potential to be used in the treatment of the coronavirus.