Trial data show potential vaccine's capability in coronavirus defense, says Sinovac

BEIJING -- Sinovac Biotech Ltd. has said that its coronavirus vaccine, called CoronaVac, is capable of eliciting an immune response from human trials without causing severe side effects.

More than 90 percent of people administered with the coronavirus shot on a 14-day interval have induced neutralizing antibodies two weeks after inoculation, said the Beijing-based company on Sunday.

Preliminary findings from phase I and II trials in China show that 743 healthy people aged 18-59 either received shots on two schedules or a placebo. More data are expected from another group in the trial that received shots on a 28-day interval, the company said, adding that the phase III trial will be carried out in Brazil, where the death toll from the virus have surpassed 43,000.

Sinovac's vaccine is among five Chinese experimental shots that have reached the final stage of human testing before getting approval for public use.