worldUpdated: Sep 13, 2020 10:04 ISTPfizer Inc and BioNTech SE on Saturday proposed to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to expand their Phase 3 pivotal Covid-19 vaccine trial to about 44,000 participants while increasing the diversity of the trial population. The initial target figure for the trial was up to 30,000 participants, which the companies said they expect to reach by next week. Drugmakers racing to develop a safe and effective coronavirus vaccine pledged in July to ensure their larger clinical trials would include diverse sets of volunteers. The vaccine candidate utilizes chemical messenger RNA to mimic the surface of the coronavirus and teach the immune system to recognize and neutralize it. Although the technology has been around for years, there has never been an approved messenger RNA (mRNA)vaccine.

Source: Hindustan Times September 13, 2020 04:35 UTC