Human Trial Of Imperial College London’s Candidate COVID-19 Vaccine Begins

The human trial of Imperial College London’s candidate coronavirus vaccine began on Tuesday with the first healthy volunteer receiving a small dose.

This is the second such trial in the United Kingdom. The first candidate vaccine that went for the human trial was from Oxford University, Business Standard reported.

A college press release quoted the clinical team, which delivered the vaccine as saying that the participant is in good health with no safety concerns.

The volunteer wants to remain anonymous.

Imperial College London’s vaccine candidate is being developed and trialled with the help of more than £41 million in funding from the UK government and a further £5 million in philanthropic donations.

The volunteer will receive a second booster dose within four weeks. Several others are expected to receive the first dose over the coming days.

In the initial stage of the trial, 15 healthy volunteers are receiving the vaccine. In the coming weeks, 300 healthy participants are expected to receive two doses of the vaccine. If the vaccine is safe and shows a promising immune response in humans, then larger trials would be planned for later in the year.