EMA REVIEWING CHINA’S SINOVAC COVID-19 VACCINE

THE HAGUE: Europe’s medicines watchdog said on Tuesday it has started reviewing China’s Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine, a process that could lead to approval for the European market.

Made by Sinovac’s Beijingbased Life Sciences unit, the vaccine by the Chinese biotech firm is the second shot developed outside the West after Russia’s Sputnik V to be considered for European use by the European Medicines Agency (EMA).

The EMA’s human medicines committee’s “decision to start the rolling review is based on preliminary results from laboratory studies (non-clinical data) and clinical studies,” the Amsterdam-based agency said.

“Studies suggest the vaccine triggers the production of antibodies that target SARS-CoV-2, and may help protect against the disease,” it said.