The Pasteur Institute in Nha Trang City, Khanh Hoa Province is recruiting volunteers for phase-3 trials of a COVID-19 nasal spray vaccine, the Vietnam News Agency reported.
Trinh Thi Bich Thuy, director of the institute’s center for training – scientific management – international cooperation, said they are in the process of recruiting 3,000 volunteers aged 18 and over in Quang Nam and Khanh Hoa Provinces for the phase-3 trial of the viral vector-based vaccine.
The trial vaccine is a meant to be given in two doses two weeks apart.
Eligible volunteers may be either healthy or with mild illnesses and in stable condition, have not been infected with the coronavirus, and be willing to participate in four check-ups during the research process.
They must not have taken a COVID-19 vaccine jab within three months of joining the trial.The recruitment will last from now through April 30 and the trials are scheduled to last for one year, beginning once the spray is first administered.
The first- and second-phase clinical trials showed that the nasal spray vaccine is safe and creates an appropriate level of immune response, according to Thuy.
Those who wish to participate in the program should contact their local medical centers, the Pasteur Institute in Nha Trang City, and the Quang Nam Center for Disease Control.
Apart from Vietnam, the phase-3 trials of this vaccine are also being carried out in four other countries, including Colombia, the Philippines, South Africa, and Indonesia.