Description:
In the age of social media, digital technology, IoT and 3D printers, it is difficult for a lot of people to understand the delays in creation of a vaccine for the new disease. What most people need to acknowledge is that despite all the urgency associated with the corona virus, there is a certain stepwise process that needs to be followed to create a vaccine. It is not as simple as mixing certain medicinal ingredients and preparing a mixture that will cure people. Before being mass produced and introduced in the public, vaccines need to be developed, tested and regulated just like any other drugs. After research on the disease and the causes of infection, a short-listed vaccine needs to undergo exploratory, pre-clinical stage to the phase 1/2/3 vaccine trials. In fact, they undergo more stringent testing compared to a non-vaccine drug like tablet or capsules. Usually, trials are conducted on a larger number of human subjects than a regular medicine. The various steps, protocols and clinical trials of a vaccine are usually a long and laborious process due to the in-depth testing and approval protocols involved. During the pre-clinical trials, the researchers conduct tests on an animal species. Multiple versions of the vaccine are then developed to find out which vaccine has the ability to build immunity against the virus without causing any damage to the body.