Desperately seeking a COVID-19 vaccine — the race is on

New York (HRNW)  Seven months after the emergence of the worst global health crisis in a century the race is on to find a COVID-19 vaccine.

To date the novel coronavirus has killed about 590,000 people worldwide and infected close to 14 million in 196 countries since the outbreak first emerged in China late last year.

How to stop in its tracks a pandemic which has wreaked havoc on the world economy is now the pressing multi-billion-dollar issue for vaccine developers aware that every suggestion the goal may be in sight will be pored over in microscopic detail.

In its most recent assessment this month, the World Health Organization identified 21 “vaccine candidates” — almost half involving Chinese companies or institutes — following a series of global clinical trials.

Many are still in what is termed the first phase, which seeks to establish a product’s security and dosage,

Some however have graduated to phase two, which examines how effective a medicine may be.