CanSinoBIO’s mRNA vaccine gets green light for clinical trials in China

Beijing, Apr 4 (EFE).- Chinese vaccine developer CanSino Biologics Inc (CanSinoBIO) has received authorization to start clinical trials of its messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine against Covid-19, state media reported Monday.

Preliminary studies showed that the formula induces a neutralizing antibody response against multiple variants of SARS-CoV-2 identified by the World Health Organization, including Omicron, according to the Global Times newspaper.

The four Covid-19 vaccines available in China, developed by Sinovac, Sinopharm and CanSinoBIO, use inactivated adenovirus vectors. China has not approved any foreign-made mRNA vaccines, such as those of Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna, as many countries have.

CanSinoBIO’s candidate also could provide stronger protection against infections caused by the circulating variants compared to those based on the original strain, according to the official newspaper.

The application to start clinical trials was submitted by the company jointly with its subsidiary CanSino Shanghai, founded in July to focus on the development of mRNA technology.

At least eight laboratories in China are focusing on mRNA vaccines, with most in the clinical trials phase.

Health authorities have recently emphasized the need for China to soon have its own mRNA vaccine to deal with outbreaks caused by Omicron, which is causing numbers of infections not seen since the start of the pandemic.

The country has double vaccinated 88.1 percent of its population of 1.4 billion people, with 143 million having received a booster dose, according to data released by the National Health Commission on Apr. 1.

The institution estimates the infections since the start of the pandemic at 156,143, although that number only takes into account symptomatic cases. EFE

lcl/tw