China races to find virus vaccine

China has authorized fast-track procedures, allowing preclinical phases — such as animal tests and other studies — to be conducted at the same time instead of one after the other

BEIJING (AFP) — China has mobilized itsarmyandfast-trackedtestsintheglobal race to find a coronavirus vaccine, but its labs also have an image tarnished by past health scandals to overcome.

Sixmonthsafterthefirstcasesemerged in the city of Wuhan, China has moved quicklytodevelopavaccineandisinvolved in several of the dozen or so international clinical trials currently under way.

Researchers have reported promising early results from tests on humans and monkeys,andauthoritieshopetohavethe first shots ready for the public this year.

TheMilitaryAcademyofMedicalSciences is among those working on a vaccine, in partnership with a pharmaceutical firm.

China has authorized fast-track procedures,allowingpreclinicalphases —suchasanimaltestsandotherstudies — to be conducted at the same time instead of one after the other.

But Ding Sheng, dean of the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences at Beijing’s Tsinghua University, sounded a note of caution around using“non-conventional methods.”

“I understand that people are eagerly waiting for a vaccine,” Ding said in the People’s Daily, a Communist Party organ.

“Butonascientificpointofview,wecan’t lower our criteria, even in an emergency,” he said.

Ding also questioned the decision to authoriszphaseoneandtwoclinicaltrialsat thesametime,allowinglabstoavoidhaving toseekauthorisationbeforeproceedingfrom one to the other.

Nick Jackson, of the Coalition for EpidemicPreparednessInnovations(CEPI), however,pointedoutthatChinawasnotthe only country to do this.

“Many organizations globally are conducting adaptive trials that allow for rapid transition from phase one to two studies,”saidJackson,whoseorganization funds research into vaccines.

“This approach is necessary given the urgent need for vaccines.”

Onepharmaceuticalcompany,Sinopharm, saiditsvaccinecouldbereadyforthepublic at the end of the year or early 2021.

The head of China’s Centre for Disease Control and Prevention hopes a vaccine could be ready as early as September for priority cases, such as health workers.