Russia’s Potential COVID-19 Vaccine Proven Safe and Well-Tolerated in First Clinical Trial

Russia has claimed to have developed a safe vaccine against the novel coronavirus, following the completion of clinical trials of a potential COVID-19 vaccine candidate that was developed locally.

The Sechenov University (Moscow, Russia) has finished a clinical study of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by the Gamalei Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology (Moscow, Russia). This is the first and only Russian-made vaccine against COVID-19 shortlisted by the World Health Organization in their report on 23 clinical trials around the world.

For the trials, the Sechenov University recruited 38 healthy volunteers, out of which the first group of 18 people received the vaccine on June 18 and the second group of 20 people on June 23. The tested vaccine has been proved safe for the patients, which was the key result of the clinical study, according to Yelena Smolyarchuk, Head of the Sechenov University Centre for Expert Evaluation of Medicinal Products.

Additionally, the Russian Defense Ministry has reported that the vital signs of the volunteers remained within normal limits for 28 days after vaccination. All the volunteers have been discharged from hospital but will remain under observation for the next six months to see if they develop any health issues due to the vaccine over the long-term. Before being discharged from the hospital, the volunteers were made to undergo a medical check-up and pass a blood test to find out if they had developed an immune response to the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

In a video released by the Defense Ministry, researcher Svetlana Volchikhina said, “Their immunity is working well, antibodies are being created, they are protected against the coronavirus.” The results of the trials ‘allow us to speak with confidence about the safety and good tolerability of the vaccine,’ the Defense Ministry said in a statement.

Related Links:
Sechenov University
Gamalei Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology