Cincinnati Children’s Hospital is now one of four sites in the United States taking part in a COVID-19 vaccine trial.It’s a global effort that has doctors at the local level excited about the potential.Children’s Hospital said this trial started in Germany last week, where some of the first human participants were given a candidate vaccine dose.It is a ground-breaking development as Children’s Hospital becomes one of the few sites testing candidate vaccines to prevent COVID-19.The hospital said it stems from a joint effort by immunotherapy company, BioNTech SE in Germany, and the drug company, Pfizer.”It’s a very cool study design that allows for flexibility,” Dr. Carl Fichtenbaum, with the UC College of Medicine, said.Fichtenbaum said he is not surprised to see Children’s Hospital in this effort.The Gamble Vaccine Research Center is one of nine Vaccine and Treatment Evaluation Units in the country.”Cincinnati Children’s is a powerhouse in vaccine development, going back to the days of Albert Sabin and the development of the polio vaccine,” Fichtenbaum said.According to Children’s Hospital, the continuous study will look at factors including safety and optimal doses of four vaccine candidates.They said the U.S. study will first enroll as many as 360 healthy people in a group, ages 18 to 55, and another group, ages 65 to 85.Children’s said older adults will be given a candidate vaccine dose once it’s proven safe and effective in the younger group.Doctors said the prospective COVID-19 vaccine contains genetic material called messenger RNA that makes a participant’s body create a piece of the virus and fire up antibodies to protect them.For those developing vaccines, like with the flu, Fichtenbaum said they aim for cross-effectiveness with other strains.”Whether this will be the best vaccine or the one that really goes forward, time will tell,” he said.Doctors at Children’s Hospital emphasized that it would not be possible to get COVID-19 from the vaccine.They plan to enroll up to 90 participants during the first stage of the study, and expect to administer the first candidate vaccine in the next two weeks.The companies involved estimate if a vaccine is successful, millions of doses could be produced in 2020.They said that number could be increased to hundreds of millions of doses in 2021.To find out if you could be eligible for current or future studies, visit Children’s questionnaire, call 513-636-7699 or email [email protected].
CINCINNATI —
Cincinnati Children’s Hospital is now one of four sites in the United States taking part in a COVID-19 vaccine trial.
It’s a global effort that has doctors at the local level excited about the potential.
Children’s Hospital said this trial started in Germany last week, where some of the first human participants were given a candidate vaccine dose.
It is a ground-breaking development as Children’s Hospital becomes one of the few sites testing candidate vaccines to prevent COVID-19.
The hospital said it stems from a joint effort by immunotherapy company, BioNTech SE in Germany, and the drug company, Pfizer.
“It’s a very cool study design that allows for flexibility,” Dr. Carl Fichtenbaum, with the UC College of Medicine, said.
Fichtenbaum said he is not surprised to see Children’s Hospital in this effort.
The Gamble Vaccine Research Center is one of nine Vaccine and Treatment Evaluation Units in the country.
“Cincinnati Children’s is a powerhouse in vaccine development, going back to the days of Albert Sabin and the development of the polio vaccine,” Fichtenbaum said.
According to Children’s Hospital, the continuous study will look at factors including safety and optimal doses of four vaccine candidates.
They said the U.S. study will first enroll as many as 360 healthy people in a group, ages 18 to 55, and another group, ages 65 to 85.
Children’s said older adults will be given a candidate vaccine dose once it’s proven safe and effective in the younger group.
Doctors said the prospective COVID-19 vaccine contains genetic material called messenger RNA that makes a participant’s body create a piece of the virus and fire up antibodies to protect them.
For those developing vaccines, like with the flu, Fichtenbaum said they aim for cross-effectiveness with other strains.
“Whether this will be the best vaccine or the one that really goes forward, time will tell,” he said.
Doctors at Children’s Hospital emphasized that it would not be possible to get COVID-19 from the vaccine.
They plan to enroll up to 90 participants during the first stage of the study, and expect to administer the first candidate vaccine in the next two weeks.
The companies involved estimate if a vaccine is successful, millions of doses could be produced in 2020.
They said that number could be increased to hundreds of millions of doses in 2021.
To find out if you could be eligible for current or future studies, visit Children’s questionnaire, call 513-636-7699 or email [email protected].
