A coronavirus vaccine developed by British and Vietnamese scientists has proved "successful" in a trial with 50 lab mice.
Dr. Do Tuan Dat, the president of the Vaccine and Biological One Member Limited Company (Vabiotech) in the northern Vietnamese capital Hanoi, said: "This is an initial success in developing a COVID-19 vaccine in Vietnam."
According to local media, the vaccine has been developed by collaborating scientists at Vabiotech and the University of Bristol in the UK.
Dr. Dat said that mice were administered with multiple antigen doses during the testing phase with some subjects being vaccinated with one or two doses of 3 to 10 micrograms each.
He announced that all 50 mice are in good health 10 days after the trial and are currently being monitored for immune responses.
In the coming days, scientists will send mice blood samples to the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology in Hanoi for an initial evaluation followed by a second in the coming two weeks, according to reports.
If the test proves successful, scientists plan to expand on their work and seek funding from international agencies.
Dr. Dat said the vaccine contains a strain carrying COVID-19 antigens that researchers generated in the lab and tested on other animals with promising results.
He added: "So it is reasonable to expect the vaccine given to mice is also safe."
The company believes that it will take between 12 and 18 months to develop a safe COVID-19 vaccination for humans.
At the moment, there are no approved vaccines or medication for the virus and around 150 vaccine projects are underway around the world, according to reports.
