The CoronaVac vaccine, developed by Chinese pharmaceutical
firm Sinovac, has showed effectiveness of 78 % in final-stage clinical trials in
Brazil, AFP reported, quoting officials.

“This is a
historic day, a day of hope,” Sao Paulo state Governor Joao Doria said
during a news conference on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the
Butantan Institute, Sao Paulo’s leading public health center, said it will
apply for emergency approval from the Brazilian regulatory agency on Friday and
the vaccination campaign will likely begin on January 25.

Turkey, which also
helped carry out Phase 3 tests of the vaccine, said last month that it had
shown effectiveness of 91.25% in its trials.

Sinovac is yet to
release the worldwide results from the tests, which are also being carried out
in Chile and Indonesia.

Meanwhile, the
efficacy rate reported by Brazil for CoronaVac is well below the 95 percent
reported for the vaccines from US pharmaceutical firms Pfizer and Moderna. However,
CoronaVac is easier to deploy as it does not have to be stored at
extremely low temperatures.