UCL supports trialling of Covid-19 vaccine in healthy volunteers

A UCL supported trial, which is testing the Covid-19 vaccine candidate developed by Imperial College London, is now recruiting members of the public at UCLH. Pre-clinical research of the COVAC1 study has shown that the vaccine produced highly specific antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in mice, which were able to neutralise the virus. The trial is now testing whether the vaccine - which applies a new type of RNA technology - is safe and produces an effective immune response against COVID-19 in people. Professor Vincenzo Libri (UCL Institute of Neurology and Director of the NIHR UCLH Clinical Research Facility) is leading efforts for the trial at UCLH, which is one of the six study sites, supported by his UCLH and UCL team. COVAC1 is the second Covid-19 vaccine trial UCL is involved in - scientists at UCL's Vax-Hub worked with Oxford University to provide the research base for their vaccine. In total, as part of COVAC1, 300 'healthy volunteers' aged between 18 and 75 are set to receive the vaccine for this early phase trial. Of this, Professor Libri's team plans to vaccinate 40 people in August.