A Chinese-made vaccine against the coronavirus entered the final stage of human testing in Brazil on Tuesday, where volunteers received the first doses of what officials hope will be a game-changer in the global pandemic.
The vaccine, developed by private Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac Biotech, became the third in the world to enter Phase 3 clinical trials, or large-scale testing on humans.
Phase 3 is the last step before regulatory approval. Phase 1 is about safety testing on a small number of people to check a dose and make sure it does not have severe side effects. Phase 2 is checking it has the right immune response.
"We're living in unique and historic times and that's why I wanted to be part of this trial," said a doctor, 27, who received the first dose at the Clinical Hospital of Sao Paulo.
About 9,000 health workers across six Brazilian states will receive the vaccine, known as CoronaVac, in two doses over the next three months under the study.
The initial results were expected within 90 days, Sao Paulo Governor Joao Doria said on Monday.
Sinovac is partnering with a Brazilian public health research centre, the Butantan Institute, on the trials.
If the vaccine proves safe and effective, the institute will have the right to produce 120 million doses under the deal, officials said.
Brazil is the second-hardest-hit country in the coronavirus pandemic, after the US.
Its death toll passed 80,000 on Monday, and it has registered more than 2.1 million infections.
Because the virus is still spreading quickly in the South American country, it is considered to be an ideal testing ground for vaccines.
Brazil is also helping to carry out Phase 3 testing of another experimental vaccine, developed by the University of Oxford and pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca.
It has a similar deal to produce that vaccine domestically if it is successful in tests, which are also being carried out in Britain and South Africa.
Brazilian health regulators announced on Monday that they had authorised Phase 1, 2 and 3 trials of two more vaccines, developed by US company Pfizer and Germany's BioNTech.
Researchers worldwide are racing to develop and test a vaccine for the virus. There are more than 150 projects so far.
Studies published on Monday in British medical journal The Lancet found two vaccines were safe and produced an immune response in Phase 2 trials.
They were the Oxford vaccine and another Chinese-made vaccine, developed by pharmaceutical firm CanSino Biologics and the Beijing Institute of Biotechnology.
Prof Sarah Gilbert, who is heading the Oxford University vaccine programme, said she was optimistic about the results.
“There is still much work to be done before we can confirm if our vaccine will help manage the Covid-19 pandemic but these early results hold promise," Prof Gilbert said.
The UK government has already signed a deal with the university and pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca to produce 100 million doses for the UK.
Shares in the company were up 0.4 per cent on the day after the positive findings were flagged last week.
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Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
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THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
Porsche Taycan Turbo specs
Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors
Transmission: two-speed
Power: 671hp
Torque: 1050Nm
Range: 450km
Price: Dh601,800
On sale: now
Bharat
Director: Ali Abbas Zafar
Starring: Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Sunil Grover
Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
How to help
Donate towards food and a flight by transferring money to this registered charity's account.
Account name: Dar Al Ber Society
Account Number: 11 530 734
IBAN: AE 9805 000 000 000 11 530 734
Bank Name: Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank
To ensure that your contribution reaches these people, please send the copy of deposit/transfer receipt to: juhi.khan@daralber.ae
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
