Coronavirus is spreading around the world, but there are still no drugs that can kill the virus or vaccines that can protect against it.
So how far are we from these life-saving medicines?
Steps to make the vaccine practical
We have several steps to make the vaccine practical.
１．Animal experiments
２．Human experiments
３．Mass production
４．Prioritized administration
It means, realistically, one would not be ready until at least the middle of next year.
What about drugs?
Doctors are testing current anti-viral drugs to see if they work against coronavirus. This speeds up research as they are known to be safe to give to people.
How to create the vaccine
How do you create a vaccine?
Vaccines harmlessly show viruses or bacteria (or even small parts of them) to the immune system. The body’s defences recognise them as an invader and then learn how to fight it.
Then if the body is ever exposed for real, it already knows how to fight the infection.
The main method of vaccination for decades has been to use the original virus.
The measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine are made by using weakened versions of those viruses that cannot cause a full-blown infection. The seasonal flu jab is made by taking the main strains of flu doing the rounds and completely disabling them.
The work on a new coronavirus vaccine is using newer, and less tested, approaches called “plug and play” vaccines. Because we know the genetic code of the new coronavirus, Sars-CoV-2, we now have the complete blueprint for building that virus.
As for using existing drugs for coronavirus, the Japanese government is pushing for quick approval of the flu drug Avigan as a treatment for the infected. The drug has already shown signs of being effective in relieving symptoms after being administered in dozens of cases, Abe (the prime minister of Japan) said.