On March 16th, health officials of the United States Government announced that a 43-year-old woman will be given the first dose of the experimental coronavirus vaccine.
The trial that is set to take place in the Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute (KPWHRI) will test 45 volunteers over the next six weeks. During this phase, the safety of the virus will be tested as well as its ability to immune the human body systems to the virus.
While every drug needs thorough testing on animal models before it has experimented on humans, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious disease (NIAID) has fast-tracked the process in order to make the drugs available to the public that is battling a virus that is spreading dangerously. While this is just the first phase, the researchers have clarified that the drug needs to pass three iterative phases before it is in the market.
What is Phase 1?
The phase one trial will see at least 20 to 80 people undergoing the tests who will receive different doses as a part of the experiment. Going by the early estimate of the researchers, if everything goes well, it would take anywhere between 12 to 18 months before the vaccine is deemed successful and is available for the world. Over the course of the time, the researchers will keep a close eye on the 45 volunteers, the metabolism of each individual and the plausible side effects of the vaccine.
Dr. Anthony Fauci of the United States National Institute of Health termed the current times as “urgent public health priority” and also said the vaccine development has been launched in “record speed”.
Jennifer Haller, the first human to undertake the dosage is the mother of two teenagers and was quoted saying, “In this helpless situation, it is an opportunity for me to something.”
When asked about the reaction of her teenagers, she said that “they think it is something cool.”
The Corona Virus has dented the social and economic fabric of the world with India reporting 130 positive cases as of today morning. The world is hoping for a vaccine and the United States is promised to do so. The results of the vaccine are awaited with a lot of hope.
