Turkey to roll out COVID-19 vaccine this summer

By Zehra Melek Cat

KONYA, Turkey (AA) - Turkey will roll out its coronavirus vaccine this summer, the country's head of vaccine development said Monday,

Trials for the SARS-COV-2 mRNA vaccine are being held across several Turkish universities and labs, including the Middle East Technical University and Acibadem Labmed Health Services.

Nadir Kocak, who is heading the project to make the vaccine, told Anadolu Agency that mRNA is known as a third generation vaccine technology in the world.

"One of our biggest goals was to bring this technology to our country," he said, adding that they started working on the vaccine nearly eight months after the BioNTech/Pfizer and US pharma company Moderna, who have now rolled out their respective vaccines.

"Although this seems like a disadvantage, starting late has given us the opportunity to follow the latest publications on the viral protein in the world. We have seen formulas being used by leading organizations. We have moved toward developing a more stable, more effective vaccine," he added.

He noted that they were working on a vaccine that could last for up to six months at room temperature, therefore eliminating the need for a cold chain.

Kocak said their first mRNA vaccine was developed a month-and-a-half ago and now they were heading toward the large stage in animal trials.

He added that three different formulas of vaccines were devised by the experts and their synthesis was completed.

"We will start human trials within two months with the most effective one. We aim to create an effective and heat resistant vaccine. Our goal is to offer this vaccine to [the service of] humanity in the summer months," he added.

Noting that the phase studies were kept short due to the pandemic, Kocak said all vaccines received emergency use approval in the third phase.

For now a double dose of the vaccine will be administered two weeks apart, he said, adding that this proportion could change in the next two to three years.

* Writing by Jeyhun Aliyev from Ankara