China in thick of race for COVID-19 vaccine

Aimed squarely at the prestige from being first in the global race for a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, China’s government, including the military and several state-backed companies, has committed “hundreds of millions” of dollars and cleared regulatory barriers to accelerate R&D.

Domestic drugmakers have already been ramping up production as Chairman Xi Jinping has committed to share a domestically developed vaccine with the world.

Five Chinese companies are behind five of 10 vaccine candidates being testing in humans according to WHO. Two are being developed by state-run China National Biotec Group Co.

Another group, tied to China’s military, has received the nod to run a late-stage study in Canada.

Tianjin-based CanSino Biologics, together with the military, was the first to publish study results (Phase 1) in an established medical journal (The Lancet).

China is a step behind with vaccine-making technologies, however. Four of the candidates in clinical trials were produced by an older method using inactivated viruses, the same approach long-used for flu, hepatitis A, polio and rabies vaccines. Moderna’s top candidate, currently in a Phase 2 trial, is an RNA vaccine.

Privately held Sinovac Biotech Ltd., along with several government entities, is conducting Phase 1 & 2 studies on its candidate in Jiangsu province.

Regardless of who wins the race, Chinese companies should play a key role in vaccine manufacturing considering their capacities. The country is already one of the top producers in the world.

Both the China and the U.S. expect to have a vaccine available by year-end.

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