Sinovac's vaccine 'attractive option,' study finds

The COVID-19 vaccine developed by Chinese company Sinovac Biotech, was found to trigger a quick immune response, according to preliminary trial results published on Wednesday.

Although, the level of antibodies produced was lower than in people who had recovered from the disease.

The findings were published in a peer-reviewed paper in medical journal, The Lancet Infectious Diseases. It looked at the results in Phase I and Phase II clinical trials in China involving more than 700 participants.

In a statement released alongside the study, one of the authors said that the Sinovac vaccine called CoronaVac, is capable of inducing a quick antibody response within four weeks of immunization, two doses of the vaccine, 14 days apart.

One researcher involved called the vaccine 'an attractive option' becuase it can be stored at normal fridge temperatures and may remain stable for up to three years.

This differs from the vaccine by Pfizer which can only be kept in a normal fridge for up to 5 days, or Moderna's, which is expected to last for 30 days at normal fridge temperatures, but researchers stressed Phase III trials would be crucial to determining if the vaccine is sufficient to protect people from the coronavirus infection.

One professor from Johns Hopkins University, not involved in the study, also warned that the results must be interpreted with caution until then.

Sinovac is currently running three Phase III trials in Indonesia, Brazil and Turkey.

Four other experimental vaccines developed in China are undergoing late-stage trials to determine their effectiveness in preventing COVID-19.