Oxford Begins COVID-19 Vaccine Trials to Meet September Deadline
On Mar. 17, 2020, European Commission (EC) president Ursula von der Leyen said she was hopeful a vaccine for COVID-19 could be available this September. Her view was based on conversations she had had with managers of German biotechnology firm CureVac AG which has developed an experimental messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine that it plans to […]
Bill Gates Says Health Care Workers Will Be First to Get Coronavirus Vaccine
Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates predicted on Mar. 18, 2020 that the first licensed coronavirus vaccines for COVID-19 will be available within 18 months and that health care workers will be among the first to get the shots. Gates co-chairs the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which recently invested $50 million to develop a […]
Mortality Rate for COVID-19 May Be Closer to Influenza
At a press briefing on Mar. 3, 2020, the director general of the World Health Organization (WHO), Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus, said, “Globally, about 3.4 percent of reported COVID-19 cases have died.” On Mar. 13, The New York Times reported that modeling experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) were estimating that if […]
Adenovirus Based Coronavirus Vaccine Being Tested
Greffex, Inc., a privately-held, multinational genetic engineering company headquartered in Houston, Texas has announced that it has completed development of a vaccine for the COVID-19 coronavirus. The vaccine will now proceed to testing in laboratory animals under supervision by the U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and regulatory agencies in China.1 Greffex Got $18.9M from […]
U.S. Marines and Navy Prepare to Execute Pandemic Plan As Questions Resurface About Coronavirus Origin
Responding to the coronavirus outbreak in China, where tens of thousands of citizens suspected of being infected with coronavirus (COVID-2019) have been detained and involuntarily taken to quarantine camps,1 on Feb. 1, 2020 an executive order was issued by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), including the Joint Chiefs of Staff, directing the U.S. Northern […]
HIV Vaccine Fails Clinical Trial in South Africa
Story Highlights Another attempt to create an effective vaccine against the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) has been stopped early because it was not found to prevent HIV infection. It is estimated that 1,000 people are newly infected every day in South Africa. HIV virus appears to evade and destroy cells of the immune system and […]