On Friday, a team of Russian scientists published the first report on their Covid-19 vaccine, which had been roundly criticized because of President Vladimir Putin’s decision last month to approve it before clinical trials had proved it safe and effective. In a small group of volunteers, the scientists found that the vaccine produced a modest level of antibodies against the coronavirus, while causing only mild side effects. In August, Mr. Putin announced with great fanfare that the vaccine — called Sputnik V — “works effectively enough” to be approved. He declared its approval to be a “very important step for our country, and generally for the whole world.”But vaccine developers denounced the decision, observing that no data had been published on the vaccine. In addition, the critics pointed out, the Russian scientists had yet to run a large trial of tens of thousands of people, which is required to demonstrate that a vaccine works.

Source: New York Times September 04, 2020 18:18 UTC