COVID-19: The Race to Find the First Vaccine

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is on everybody’s minds, from pharmaceutical industry employees to the general public. As deaths and infections rise, governments, businesses in the pharmaceutical industry, health groups, and charities are spending billions of dollars in research for a vaccine.

In the current race to reach a suitable treatment, many new developments and changes have transpired that may significantly impact the fight against COVID.

Current Governmental Action

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently been fast-tracking the testing procedures and regulatory review of various candidates for COVID-19 vaccines. Pharmaceutical developers are also opting to run safety and effectiveness trials simultaneously rather than in sequence as before.

The result will be more vaccines on the market released with less extensive testing. While risky, this new approach is necessary in the face of the pandemic.

Additional investment into the manufacturing and distribution of the vaccine will also be vital, as hundreds of millions of doses must be made available in the coming months. Another U.S. agency, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), has spent nearly a billion dollars to support the research and development of vaccines.

Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson has had immense activity in the development of COVID-19 vaccines. The American multinational recently received $500 million from BARDA to study further its vaccine candidate, a modified cold virus that promotes an immune response in its patient.

While current trials have guaranteed the safety of the treatment, proof of effectiveness is still to come in further testing. The company will collaborate with Emergent to deliver a targeted 1 billion doses worldwide by 2021.



Sanofi SA

The world’s largest vaccine production firm, Sanofi SA, has also received funding from BARDA for its own studies. The solution here involves using insect cells to grow virus proteins that spur an immune response.

Moderna Inc.

This biotech business from Massachusetts has begun human-focused trials of its vaccine candidate. With financial assistance from BARDA and the U.S. National Institutes of Health, Moderna plans to scale its manufacturing upward in preparation for a worldwide release.

The company’s solution uses genetic material known as mRNA to instruct cells in the body to produce proteins related to coronavirus treatment. Such a vaccine is easy not only to design but also to generate in large quantities.

Pfizer Inc.

Yet another pharmaceutical business, Pfizer, has partnered with German firms CureVac and BioNTech SE to begin testing its own mRNA-based COVID-19 treatments.

Gilead

Not all developments are positive in the race for a coronavirus vaccine. A new therapy from Gilead Sciences, an experimental drug called remdesivir, showed promise initially when a Chicago hospital linked it to benefits in affected patients.

A Chinese study, however, returned no measurable improvement from the drug compared to control groups. While the company is continuing with its current tests, it draws criticisms from the FDA and the medical community for not including a control group and thus invalidating the results.

Hydroxychloroquine and Chloroquine

Other potential treatments are hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, though the FDA has noted that effectiveness against COVID-19 is not yet guaranteed. In fact, the government entity cautions patients and hospitals about the side effects, including heart rhythm problems.

The Takeaway

The search for a coronavirus vaccine is filled with long shots, unexpected results, and rushed testing. As large pharmaceutical organizations are racing to find a cure, it’s worth learning about recent updates, the companies making strides, and the mistakes made along the way.

In this quickly changing environment, proper pharmaceutical training and knowledge is more important than ever amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Get your teams up to speed with professional training and certification courses from CfPIE today.