A participant in the test series of the British University of Oxford for a vaccine against the coronavirus has died. However, the man was allegedly not given the potential serum during the tests in Brazil, but only a placebo, as reported by Brazilian media yesterday (local time).
The university said that a review by independent experts had concluded that there were no safety issues and that the tests could be continued.
According to media reports, the deceased was a 28-year-old doctor who had been active in the fight against the pandemic and had voluntarily participated in the tests for the vaccine. The man was infected with the coronavirus and died as a result of this infection.
Thousands of participants worldwide
The University of Oxford is conducting research on a coronavirus vaccine together with the British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca. The tests of the University and AstraZeneca are in the third and final phase, which is very costly. Thousands of people in several countries are taking part, and in Brazil there are currently around 8,000.
The compound tested by the University and AstraZeneca is considered one of the most promising vaccine candidates worldwide. Around the globe, feverish research is being conducted into vaccines against the novel virus, which has large parts of the world under its control.
When testing new drugs and vaccines, it is common practice to give some of the participants a placebo instead of the drug to be tested in order to compare the effects. A placebo is a sham drug that does not contain a drug substance.
hp, Source: ORF.at/agencies. Picture: stockilyapp.com
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