London: The UK government on Wednesday announced an early access agreement with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Sanofi Pasteur for an estimated 60 million doses of an experimental new vaccine being tested to combat COVID-19.
The agreement with Britain’s GSK and France’s Sanofi, which combined have among the largest vaccine manufacturing capabilities in the world, will supply the UK with 60 million doses of their vaccine based on existing DNA-based technology used to produce Sanofi’s flu vaccine.
While it remains uncertain as to which, if any, of the anti-coronavirus vaccines under various stages of development around the world will ultimately work, the British government said the latest deal helps grow the country’s portfolio of vaccine candidates and adds to previous agreements.
“Our scientists and researchers are racing to find a safe and effective vaccine at a speed and scale never seen before. While this progress is truly remarkable, the fact remains that there are no guarantees, said UK Business Secretary Alok Sharma.
The latest agreement comes as the government confirmed that almost 72,000 people have volunteered to receive information about participating in future vaccine studies following the launch of the NHS COVID-19 vaccine research registry last week.
The aim is to get 500,000 people signed up by October to enable large-scale clinical studies. (PTI)
