Israel to soon have coronavirus vaccine

(VOVWORLD) - Israeli scientists are on the cusp of developing the first vaccine against the novel coronavirus, according to Science and Technology Minister Ofir Akunis. 

If all goes as planned, the vaccine could be ready within a few weeks and available in 90 days.

For the past four years, scientists at the Galilee Research Institute have been developing a vaccine against the infectious bronchitis virus (IBV), which causes a bronchial disease in poultry. The effectiveness of the vaccine has been proven in preclinical trials carried out at the Veterinary Institute. The scientists sequenced the DNA of the new coronavirus and found it has a high genetic similarity to the avian flu virus and a similar infection mechanism.

The vaccine could achieve safety approval in 90 days. It will be an oral vaccine, making it particularly accessible to the general public.

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