The coronavirus pandemic has brought global economies to their knees and only an effective vaccine will end all chaos and bring things to normal. This has created a race as people hope that an end to the crisis would be sooner than anticipated.
Scientists are scrambling to find a cure by sharing research and overcoming obstacles others may be facing. There are 100 research groups pursuing vaccines with nearly a dozen in advanced stages of human trials or poised to start soon. Six have been approved by the WHO leading into large studies in China, US, and Europe to eventually find a vaccine.
So far there has been little way to predict which vaccine, if any, will work safely. Despite the advancements, it would take at least a year or more before we have a vaccine. Bill Gates believes a vaccine could be developed within nine months and even Trump claimed it would be available this year.
With the hunt for a vaccine still on, China seems to the race it has more trials than any other country. Since COVID-19 is a new disease, Chinese firms are testing inactivated vaccines, made by growing the new coronavirus and killing it. These have been used before but are hard to mass produce.
There are many obstacles a potential vaccine is facing and scientists are unsure if any will work in the real world. They could probably be tested is an area where the virus is fading or volunteers are not available due to lockdown. World leaders are devising ways to expedite efforts and suppress the number of years it takes to develop a vaccine.
A potential vaccine is also being affected by geopolitics such as the ongoing spat between the WHO and the US and the proliferation of conspiracies that the virus was made in a Wuhan laboratory. There should be an equitable distribution of an eventual vaccine among rich and poor nations along with sufficient funding. WHO and European countries have secured $8 billion for vaccine research and development.
A COVID-19 vaccine remains elusive so far and there is a possibility that it may never be developed. Under such circumstances, we may have to learn to live with the disease and make drastic changes in our lifestyle. Millions of people have pinned hopes on the researchers who are in a race against time to save the world.
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