Russia rushes to test second coronavirus vaccine

Russia's first vaccine, the "Sputnik V" has caused many in the West to question its effectiveness, suggesting that crucial steps in the research were overlooked.

Scientists develop a vaccine against the coronavirus disease in Saint Petersburg (photo credit: REUTERS)
Scientists develop a vaccine against the coronavirus disease in Saint Petersburg
(photo credit: REUTERS)
While controversy over Russia's first batch of coronavirus vaccine has yet subsided, scientists from Vector State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology have announced that are working on a second vaccine called "EpiVacCorona," according to the Times of India.
Russia's first vaccine, the "Sputnik V" has caused many in the West to question its effectiveness, suggesting that crucial steps in the research were overlooked.
The controversial first drug reportedly triggers an immune response, after being administered in two doses, over fourteen to twenty-one days.
Initial results suggested that the test subjects who received the new vaccine didn't experience any side effects.
Currently, some 160 different vaccines are being developed around the world. Five of these, have managed to get to the last phase of research which involvements human trials.
The safety and efficacy of the Russian vaccines remain unclear, especially given the fact that under normal conditions it takes between ten and fifteen years to approve a vaccine.