The Hanoi-based Vaccine and Biological Production Company No. 1 (Vabiotech) has tested a COVID-19 vaccine on 12 rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta), a kind of monkey of the Macaca mulatta family, on Reu Island, the northern port province of Quang Ninh.
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In June, Vabiotech tested the vaccine on mice. (Source: VGP)
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Monkeys are aged between three and five and weigh more than three kilograms each. They had their health checked and are not infected with any diseases, said Vabiotech director Do Tuan Dat.
After being vaccinated, the monkeys will be monitored for three months. Then, their blood samples will be taken and sent to Hanoi for further analysis.
The monkeys will be tested in two periods. In each period, they will be divided into two groups, with one being vaccinated and the other not vaccinated. After that, they will be monitored daily on separate islands.
The testing will follow a similar model that may be performed on people. The animals will be injected with the vaccine twice, with the shots being 18-21 days apart.
A month after the second shot, researchers will assess their immune response to see the differing effects between the injected and non-injected groups.
In June, Vabiotech tested the vaccine on mice.
Representative data was collected from the mice tests and scientists will continue testing the vaccine on other animals.
The results of the testing on monkeys will be a foundation for the next stage and proposal to test the vaccine on people./.
Compiled by BTA