China approves patent for COVID-19 vaccine still in the testing phase

China's State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO) approved the first patent for a candidate vaccine against COVID-19 - still in the third phase of testing - that could "be mass-produced in a short period of time," according to local press reports today.

This vaccine, developed by the Military Scientific Institute and the Chinese biopharmaceutical company CanSino Biologics, began to be used at the end of June in the Chinese Army after a team led by researcher Chen Wei discovered a highly efficient neutralizing monoclonal antibody.

The results of the second phase of the vaccine's clinical trials showed that it is safe and induces an immune response against coronavirus, according to research published in late July in The Lancet.

According to SIPO's patent, the vaccine has shown a "good immune response in mice and rodents, and can induce the body to produce a strong cellular and humoral immune response in a short time," reports the Cantonese newspaper Southern Metropolis.

The patent states that this vaccine "can be mass-produced in a short period of time", and that it is "quick and easy to prepare". Its safety and effectiveness will have to be confirmed in phase three, which is carried out abroad, adds the information.

On the other hand, experts quoted by the Global Times indicate that the granting of the patent demonstrates the "originality and creativity" of the vaccine, and that "it is likely that CanSino will also apply for a patent together with foreign authorities to protect its intellectual property rights during international cooperation.

Research published in July in The Lancet reported that more than 500 people were tested as a follow-up to the first tests published last May, also with positive results, but that further human Phase III trials will be needed to confirm whether this candidate vaccine effectively protects against SARS-CoV-2 infection.

The authors stressed, however, that no participant in the phase two trials was exposed to the virus after vaccination, so it is not yet possible to determine whether the vaccine candidate effectively protects against SARS-CoV-2 infection.

In total, the second phase of testing for this vaccine, which uses a weakened common cold virus - Adenovirus type 5, Ad5-nCoV - to provide genetic material, involved 508 participants.

CanSino Biologics developed with the Chinese Military Academy of Sciences an Ebola virus vaccine that was provisionally licensed in 2017. The company was established in 2009 in the northeastern city of Tianjin, and focuses primarily on vaccine development and production.

Typically, the period for a vaccine to be available for mass use is at least 12 to 18 months, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), although China has accelerated the processes due to the global health emergency and has allowed some studies to be carried out at the same time in several phases.