Global Health Authorities Push For Rapid Development Of COVID-19 Tests, Drugs And Vaccines

By Katharine Chorlton

In response to the Coronavirus Disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic, the scientific community, industry, and regulatory agencies are pulling together to facilitate the development of diagnostic tests, drugs, and vaccines to help prevent the spread of the disease. The timelines for development of new drugs and vaccines normally take years. In light of the situation, however, developments are moving rapidly — and on March 16, a healthy volunteer in Seattle was the first person in the US to receive a dose of an experimental coronavirus vaccine as part of a new clinical trial. 

The level of collaboration in the scientific community has been unprecedented. Elsevier, a global research and analytics publishing business, has set up a Novel Coronavirus Information Center that is updated daily with the latest research, clinical data, and public health information on the virus. The business has made it openly available via PubMed Central and other public health databases free of charge while the emergency is ongoing.

Read more about this unprecedented level of collaboration in the scientific community.