THE race to find a vaccine to beat the coronavirus is being accelerated with the creation of a new UK Government taskforce.
Led by Sir Patrick Vallance, the Government’s Chief Scientific Adviser, and Professor Jonathan van Tam, its Deputy Chief Medical Officer Professor, the new team will have representatives from government, academia and industry.
They will include Sir John Bell, the Government Life Sciences Champion, as well as AstraZeneca, the leading biopharmaceutical company, and the Wellcome Trust research charity.
It will use a £14 million fund to drive forward, expedite and co-ordinate efforts to research and then produce a coronavirus vaccine, making sure one is made available to the public as quickly as possible.
Among the 21 projects making up the taskforce will be researchers at Edinburgh University, who will play a vital role, enabling the tracking of the spread of the virus in almost real time.
Alister Jack, the Scottish Secretary, said: “Scotland has world-leading universities and I am pleased they are able to use their expertise to help us understand more about this deadly virus.”
Alok Sharma, the Business Secretary, who announced the new taskforce at the daily Downing St briefing, admitted developing a vaccine was a "colossal undertaking".
He said it was a complex process that would take many months and accepted there were no guarantees.
"But,” he added, “the Government is backing our scientists, betting big to maximise the chance of success."
The Taskforce will focus on five strands of activity including:
*supporting the discovery of potential coronavirus vaccines by working with the public and private sector, rapidly mobilising funding, supporting leading academics and identifying ways to fast-track clinical trials;
*preparing the UK as a leader in clinical vaccine testing and manufacturing, working with companies already at the forefront of vaccine development;
*reviewing Government regulations to facilitate rapid and safe vaccine trials;
*developing funding and operational plans for the procurement and delivery of vaccines and
*building on the UK’s research and development expertise to support international efforts to find a coronavirus vaccine.
Mr Sharma pointed to how the Government was speeding up the creation of the UK’s first vaccines manufacturing centre based in Harwell near Oxford.
"We are looking forward, so, when we do make a breakthrough, we are ready to manufacture by the millions,” insisted the Secretary of State.
But Sir Patrick introduced what he described as “some realism” in the search for a vaccine, declaring: “Each single project does not have a high probability of success.
"So, although everyone goes out with great enthusiasm and we hope they work, it's never the case that you know you've got a vaccine that's going to work.
"So that's the first thing that we need to be sure of. The second thing is then the safety and it's incredibly important that these vaccines are tested properly, that's why it takes some time to get to the clinical trials and understand the potential unwanted effects of a vaccine.
"And then only when that has been done can this be used widely across the population and so those are the stages we need to go through," he explained.
The Edinburgh University project will be led by Professor Aziz Sheikh. Using anonymised electronic health records, including GP and hospital visits and test results, from 1.2m people in Scotland, his team will track the progress of the Covid-19 epidemic in near real-time.
They will also process blood samples and swabs of the virus taken from a sub-sample of the participants to determine who has been exposed and to sequence the virus genomes. If vaccines or anti-viral therapies become available, their effectiveness will be monitored.
Meanwhile, more than 100 patients across NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde with coronavirus have started to receive potential treatments for the disease.
It is thought the RECOVERY clinical trial is one of the fastest programmes looking at such a treatment.
All patients with Covid-19 being treated at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Glasgow Royal Infirmary, Inverclyde Royal Hospital and Royal Alexandra Hospital will be offered a place on the trial.
The randomised-controlled trial has so far involved 120 patients being given an active drug or standard care including steroids, antivirals and antimalarial agents.
Dr Jennifer Armstrong, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) medical director, welcomed the move saying: "Our teams have been incredible in rising up to the challenge of Covid-19.
"Not just in the care and treatment of patients but also their dedication to improving our knowledge of the virus through clinical trials.
"This means our patients are receiving the most up to date treatment available."
Although the NHSGGC clinical trial involves experts from the University of Edinburgh, RECOVERY is running separately from the institute's STOPCOVID project involving up to 150 researchers.
Oxford University staff are also involved in the Glasgow-based UK-wide study which is funded by the UK Government.
Professor Julie Brittenden, NHSGGC research and development director, said: "I want to thank all of our staff for their efforts during this incredibly challenging time.
"Our research, development and innovation teams are working hard to improve the diagnosis and treatment of Covid-19.
"We've been able to rapidly mobilise our teams to take part in clinical trials like RECOVERY and this is a testament to their dedication to the cause."
Charles Weller, general manager at NHS Research Scotland, said: "RECOVERY has been the fastest growing clinical trial in medical history - and a crucial part of our efforts to better understand and tackle Covid-19.
"I want to thank all teams for their commitment and professionalism to this national priority study."
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