Develop edible vaccine against COVID-19

Uzbekistan scientists have begun developing a vaccine against COVID-19 in tomatoes, reported a representative of the Academy of Sciences of that Central Asian republic.

“Experiments have shown that the coronavirus protein S, synthesized in a tomato, upon reaching the intestine awakens the immune system and the antibodies produced fight against the pathogen,” the source told the RIA Nóvosti agency.

The representative of the Uzbek Academy of Sciences explained that the trials will last until the end of the year.

“It will be very economical to produce vaccines in plants. It is a safe and innocuous product, in addition, the edible vaccine is convenient to administer to children,” he added.

According to the Uzbek portal gazeta.uz, currently other countries such as Russia and Canada are also testing their edible vaccine candidates against the coronavirus.

Uzbekistan, with a population of more than 33 million people, accumulates to date 153,204 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 1,056 deaths from the infectious disease.

Pharmaceutical Moderna announced that it has completed the process to request full approval of its COVID-19 vaccine in the United States for those over 18 years of age, which until now is used under an emergency authorization.

The announcement of the biotech comes after the US regulator – the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) – gave its final authorization to Pfizer’s vaccine, which will now be called Comirnaty and will be became the first serum of its kind to receive the final seal of approval.

In a statement, the executive director of Moderna, Stéphane Bancel, stressed that his vaccine achieves, after inoculation of the second dose, an efficacy of 93% that lasts for six months.

Moderna asked US regulators for full approval of its product against COVID-19 on June 1.

If licensed, the pharmaceutical company could, among other things, sell doses directly to consumers and continue to market the vaccine once the end of the health emergency is declared.