The Chinese military has received the green light to use a coronavirus vaccine developed by its research unit and a biotech company, according to a report.
The Central Military Commission approved the use of the Ad5-nCoV vaccine candidate on Thursday for a period of one year, CanSino Biologics said in a filing, Reuters reported.
It was developed jointly by CanSino and the Beijing Institute of Biotechnology at the Academy of Military Medical Sciences. The company said clinical trials proved the vaccine was safe and showed some efficacy, according to the news outlet.
The Ad5-nCoV is one of China’s eight COVID-19 vaccine candidates approved for human trials at home and abroad. It also won approval for human testing in Canada.
“The Ad5-nCoV is currently limited to military use only and its use cannot be expanded to a broader vaccination range without the approval of the Logistics Support Department,” CanSino said, referring to the Central Military Commission.
CanSino declined to disclose to Reuters whether the innoculation is mandatory or optional, citing commercial secrets.
The Phase 1 and 2 clinical trials of the CanSino vaccine candidate showed it has the potential to be effective, but its commercial success cannot be guaranteed, the company said.
China earlier this month offered two other vaccine candidates to employees at state-owned firms traveling abroad.
Separately, AMS received an approval earlier this month to test its second experimental COVID-19 vaccine in humans.
No vaccine has yet been approved for commercial use, but more than a dozen vaccines from more than 100 candidates worldwide are being tested in humans.