Good news! After Pfizer, now this company gets closer to announce results of COVID-19 vaccine

US-based firm Moderna is getting closer to release data on its late-stage trials of the COVID vaccine candidate.

Amid rising coronavirus COVID-19 cases across the world, US-based biotechnology firm Moderna is getting closer to release  data on its late-stage trials of the coronavirus vaccine candidate.

Moderna has announced that it has collected enough data for an interim analysis of the late-stage trial of its coronavirus vaccine, adding that the analysis of the data will help the company in finding out the efficacy of the vaccine. According to the American company, the information is being prepared for submission to the independent data safety monitoring board, which is tasked with looking at the results and giving recommendations, However, Moderna is yet to announce the date for the release of the efficacy data of the coronavirus vaccine candidate.

On Monday, Pfizer Inc. And BioNTech SE on Monday said their vaccine candidate was found to be more than 90 per cent effective in preventing COVID-19. "Today is a great day for science and humanity. The first set of results from our Phase 3 COVID-19 vaccine trial provides the initial evidence of our vaccine's ability to prevent COVID-19," Pfizer Chairman and CEO, Albert Bourla had said.

Meanwhile, AIIMS Director Dr Randeep Guleria said on Wednesday (November 11) said that the extreme low temperature of minus 70 degrees Celsius required for storing a potential COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer poses a big challenge for its delivery in India, especially in its smaller towns and rural areas where it is not easy to maintain such cold chain facilities.

Most vaccines in India need to be stored at a temperature of two to eight degrees Celsius. The lowest minimum temperature at which vaccines can be kept to maintain the cold chain in most areas in the country is minus 25 degrees Celsius, Guleria said.