Europe Deemed as the Epicentre of COVID-19
In a bid to create a vaccine which could help beat the coronavirus outbreak, clinical trials have begun now in Europe. With Italy suffering more deaths than even China, the World Health Organization (WHO) has adjudged Europe as the epicentre of the outbreak. Over 100,000 cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Italy, Germany, and Spain alone. The virus is spreading rapidly throughout the continent. The researchers in Europe have started clinical trials on the vaccine for the virus. The trials are involving more than 3200 individuals.
Flexible and Adaptive trials
A research body Inserm announced the trial called Discovery. The trial is being led by Florence Ader, infectiologist in the Infectious and Tropical Disease Department of the Croix-Rousse Hospital of Lyon University Hospital. Dr. Ader said, “We analyzed the data from the scientific literature on the SARS and MERS coronaviruses and the first publications on the SARS COV-2 from China in order to come up with a list of antiviral molecules to be tested: remdesivir, lopinavir, and ritonavir in combination.”
The list of these drugs is based on the subset of experimental treatments classified as top priorities by the World Health Organization (WHO). “The great strength of this trial is its adaptive nature. This means that ineffective experimental treatments can very quickly be dropped and replaced by other molecules that emerge from research efforts,” Dr. Ader further added.
Other Countries also in the Race
Researchers from countries like China, the United States are also hustling to find medicine for the pandemic. China has also begun working on clinical trials. “Volunteers of the COVID-19 Phase one trial have already started receiving the vaccine,” stated one of the members from China’s Clinical Trial Registry. Researchers will trial on 108 participants aged between 18 and 60 from the Wuhan region.
