person wearing face mask and safety goggles holds up labelled injection vial with gloved hand

Human Trials Begin for a Low-Cost COVID-19 Vaccine to Extend Global Access

  • May 11, 2021

In a major boost to efforts to combat COVID-19 globally, a vaccine that recently entered human trials in Vietnam and Thailand, and is slated for a clinical study in Brazil, holds promise for affordable vaccine manufacturing in countries currently dependent on imported vaccines. The vaccine is the result of a partnership between The University of Texas at Austin, the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York and global partners interested in advancing the supply of affordable vaccines to address the pandemic. 

"My team and I are thrilled that our second-generation stabilized spike protein is part of this vaccine," said Jason McLellan, an associate professor of molecular biosciences who co-developed HexaPro and previously helped develop the spike protein now in use in all U.S. administered COVID-19 vaccines. "Our hope is that the vaccine will be safe, efficacious and affordable, allowing more people around the world to have protection against COVID-19." 

Read the full article from the Cockrell School of Engineering.