The results of the initial trials of the Covid-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca in collaboration with the University of Oxford are to be published today, July 20.

Richard Horton, the editor-in-chief of the Lancet Medical Journal, which will be publishing the results had tweeted on Sunday, “Tomorrow. Vaccines. Just saying.”

The tweet created quite a buzz in the medical community.

AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine is believed to be one of the front-runners in the vaccine race. The vaccine could generate an immune response against the infection. So far, over 14 lakh cases of Covid-19 have been reported across the globe, with fatalities surpassing 6 lakh.

The vaccine is currently in its final stage of trials that are being carried out in Brazil and South Africa.

Adar Poonawalla, CEO of the Serum Institute of India (SII), one of the partner firms for AstraZeneca’s vaccine, in an interview with The Tribune had said he was optimistic about the vaccine being available by this year-end and expects to mass-produce the same.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) is tracking around 140 vaccine candidates across the globe. In India, seven pharma companies are in various stages of clinical trials of their respective vaccine candidates.

Other global frontrunners of the vaccine race include Chinese company Sinovac Biotech’s vaccine candidate, which is moving into phase III trials in Brazil. Others include a vaccine candidate by the US firm Moderna, which will be entering the next stage of trials on July 27 and a vaccine candidate developed by German firm BioNTech in collaboration with Pfizer.

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