The death toll is rising as we dwell on this case. The Coronavirus pandemic is destroying livelihoods globally. People are ready to take any and all steps to stop this virus by discovering a vaccine. But the production of cure becomes difficult without proper human testing.
With government officials debating on injecting trial vaccines on people, around 3,900 people get ready for injecting. But these people will not actually receive a vaccine. They will actually get a small dose of a weekend Coronavirus in order to find an antidote.
All of these volunteers registered for this program at their will. The entire ordeal is a part of a grassroots organization by the name of 1 Day Sooner. Any individual can go the official website to register as a volunteer and help discover a Coronavirus vaccine faster.
More than 90 vaccines are being developed against SARS-CoV-2 across the world. At least six groups have begun injecting formulations into volunteers in safety trials. Here is a graphical guide explaining each vaccine design. #COVID19 https://t.co/7Mv1pmbmlg
— Nature (@nature) April 28, 2020
Coronavirus Vaccine: The human challenge trial
This experiment differs from a conventional Coronavirus vaccine due to many reasons. But the baseline remains the same, i.e. discover a cure for Coronavirus. In this experiment, healthy humans are exposed to a weaker form of Coronavirus. This is important because it will help the scientists understand the extent of the Coronavirus infection.
Human clinical trials for the first #coronavirus vaccine have started. pic.twitter.com/SHpYAmHmZQ
— UK Prime Minister (@10DowningStreet) April 29, 2020
Based on the stages of the disease the vaccine will be created. In the Journal of Infectious Diseases, bioethicist Nir Eyal says that human challenge trials help eradicate pandemic faster. These are very much equivalent to a controlled lab set up. This is not the first time that the citizens of all countries are stepping up to help the world.
Hopefully, the government will allow mass testing in order to help create vaccines faster. Because the low amount of volunteers will not do the trick anymore.
Let us know what you have to say about this ordeal in the comments section.
Suryapratim Ray is an engineer, author, robotics hobbyist, and an active Quoran. Being a technical blogger, he covers the good, bad, and ugly of science on a regular basis at Sciencenews18. In addition to his passion for writing, he’s equally keen on learning classical music.