AstraZeneca is likely to run an additional global trial to assess the efficacy of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate, its chief executive Pascal Soriot was quoted as saying on Thursday following questions over the results from the company's late-stage study. Asked by Reuters about the Bloomberg report on the additional trial, a spokesman for AstraZeneca said there is "strong merit in continuing to further investigate the half-dose/full dose regimen." WATCH | Chance to improve AstraZeneca's vaccine:The hidden opportunity in AstraZeneca’s vaccine error News Video 1:04 The manufacturing error in AstraZeneca's COVID-19 trial vaccine may ultimately lead to a better version, says Dr. Matthew Oughton, an infectious disease specialist at Montreal's Jewish General Hospital. Dr. Howard Njoo, Canada's deputy chief public health officer, told reporters that vaccine clinical trial data from press releases are being heavily scrutinized. Federal officials say Canada has agreements with these vaccine manufacturers: AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline/Sanofi, Johnson & Johnson, Medicago, Moderna, Novavax and Pfizer.

Source: CBC News November 26, 2020 17:29 UTC