Covid-19 Vaccine Tracker: Latest Updates

Vaccines typically require years of research and testing before reaching the clinic, but scientists are racing to produce a safe and effective coronavirus vaccine by next year. Researchers are testing 58 vaccines in clinical trials on humans, and at least 86 preclinical vaccines are under active investigation in animals.

Work began in January with the deciphering of the SARS-CoV-2 genome. The first vaccine safety trials in humans started in March, and now 13 have reached the final stages of testing. Some of these trials will fail, and others may end without a clear result. But a few vaccines may succeed in stimulating the immune system to produce effective antibodies against the virus.

Here is the status of all the vaccines that have reached trials in humans, along with a selection of promising vaccines still being tested in animals.

While these vaccines may potentially prevent infection, they cannot cure the disease. For an overview of treatments for Covid-19, see our Coronavirus Drug and Treatment Tracker.

The Vaccine Testing Process

The development cycle of a vaccine, from lab to clinic.

PRECLINICAL TESTING: Scientists test a new vaccine on cells and then give it to animals such as mice or monkeys to see if it produces an immune response. We have confirmed 86 preclinical vaccines in active development.

PHASE 1 SAFETY TRIALS: Scientists give the vaccine to a small number of people to test safety and dosage as well as to confirm that it stimulates the immune system.

PHASE 2 EXPANDED TRIALS: Scientists give the vaccine to hundreds of people split into groups, such as children and the elderly, to see if the vaccine acts differently in them. These trials further test the vaccine’s safety and ability to stimulate the immune system.

PHASE 3 EFFICACY TRIALS: Scientists give the vaccine to thousands of people and wait to see how many become infected, compared with volunteers who received a placebo. These trials can determine if the vaccine protects against the coronavirus. In June, the F.D.A. advised vaccine makers that they would want to see evidence that vaccines can protect at least 50 percent of those who receive it. In addition, Phase 3 trials are large enough to reveal evidence of relatively rare side effects that might be missed in earlier studies.

EARLY OR LIMITED APPROVAL: China and Russia have approved vaccines without waiting for the results of Phase 3 trials. Experts say the rushed process has serious risks.

APPROVAL: Regulators in each country review the trial results and decide whether to approve the vaccine or not. During a pandemic, a vaccine may receive emergency use authorization before getting formal approval. Once a vaccine is licensed, researchers continue to monitor people who receive it to make sure it’s safe and effective.

COMBINED PHASES: One way to accelerate vaccine development is to combine phases. Some coronavirus vaccines are now in Phase 1/2 trials, for example, in which they are tested for the first time on hundreds of people. (Note that our tracker counts a combined Phase 1/2 trial as both Phase 1 and Phase 2.)

PAUSED: If investigators observe worrying symptoms in volunteers, they can put a trial on pause. After an investigation, the trial may resume or be abandoned.

Genetic Vaccines

Vaccines that deliver one or more of the coronavirus’s own genes into our cells to provoke an immune response.

PHASE 3

On Nov. 30, the Boston-based company Moderna announced it was applying to the Food and Drug Administration for an emergency use authorization, less than a year after it launched the first clinical trial for a coronavirus vaccine. It is the second application, coming just two weeks after Pfizer and BioNTech. If Moderna receives the authorization, the first injections of its vaccine could start on Dec. 21.

Like Pfizer and BioNTech, Moderna makes its vaccine from a genetic molecule called messenger RNA (mRNA). In recent years, the company has tested mRNA vaccines for a number of diseases, but they have yet to bring one to market. In January, they began developing a vaccine for the coronavirus. The vaccine contains genetic instructions for building a coronavirus protein, known as spike. When injected into cells, the vaccine causes them to make spike proteins, which then get released into the body and provoke a response from the immune system.

The United States government bankrolled Moderna’s efforts, providing nearly $1 billion in support. In partnership with National Institutes of Health, they found that the vaccine protects monkeys from the coronavirus. In March, the scientists were the first to put a Covid-19 vaccine into human trials. After those studies yielded promising results, Phase 3 testing on 30,000 volunteers began on July 27.

On Nov. 16, Moderna announced the first preliminary data from the trial, followed by the complete data on Nov. 30. Out of 196 cases of Covid-19 among trial volunteers, 185 were in people who received the placebo. And of the 11 vaccinated volunteers who got Covid-19, none suffered from severe disease. The researchers estimated that the vaccine had an efficacy rate of 94.1 percent, far higher than experts had expected when vaccine testing began. While it’s not clear how long this efficacy will last, Moderna has found that after three months the trial participants still have a strong immune defense against the coronavirus. On Dec. 2, Moderna registered a trial to test the vaccine on children between 12 and 18 years of age.

On the business side, Moderna lost a patent dispute in July over some of their vaccine technology. The following month, the company stated that it could not be certain it was the first to make the inventions claimed in their patents, including its coronavirus vaccine. Meanwhile, the company has entered deals with several countries to supply the vaccine if it’s approved. On Aug. 11, the United States government awarded the company an additional $1.5 billion in exchange for 100 million doses if the vaccine proves safe and effective. On Nov. 25, the company reached an agreement with the European Commission to supply up to 160 million doses. Moderna has made similar deals with Canada, Japan, and Qatar.

For more details, see How Moderna’s Vaccine Works.
Updated Dec. 5

PHASE 2 PHASE 3 COMBINED PHASES

APPROVED FOR EMERGENCY USE IN THE U.K.

On Nov. 9, New York-based Pfizer and the German company BioNTech made history by presenting preliminary data indicating that their coronavirus vaccine was over 90 percent effective. It was the first time anyone had found such evidence. A week later, Moderna reported similar findings with a similar vaccine.

In May Pfizer and BioNTech launched a Phase 1/2 trial on two versions of a mRNA vaccine. They found that both versions caused volunteers to produce antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, as well as immune cells called T cells that respond to the virus. They found that one version, called BNT162b2, produced significantly fewer side effects, such as fevers and fatigue, and so they chose it to move into Phase 2/3 trials. On July 27, the companies announced the launch of a Phase 2/3 trial with 30,000 volunteers in the United States and other countries including Argentina, Brazil, and Germany. In an interim study, the companies reported that after getting the first dose, volunteers experience mostly mild to moderate side effects. On Sept. 12, Pfizer and BioNTech announced that they would seek to expand their U.S. trial to 43,000 participants. The following month, they gained permission to start testing the vaccine on children as young as 12 — the first American trial to do so.

In September, Dr. Albert Bourla, the chief executive of Pfizer, said the Phase 3 trial would deliver enough results as soon as October to show if the vaccine worked or not. President Trump touted their progress, hinting that a vaccine would be available before the election. But on Oct. 27, Dr. Bourla announced that the volunteers in the trial had yet to experience enough cases of Covid-19 to determine if the vaccines work. Finally, on Nov. 8, Pfizer released preliminary analysis of the first 94 cases. Ten days later, they followed up with the final results, based on 164 cases. Pfizer and BioNTech concluded that the vaccine is 95 percent effective. Among people over 65, who often have weak responses to vaccines, it was 94 percent effective. Additionally, the trial detected no serious side effects.

On Dec. 2, the United Kingdom gave emergency authorization to Pfizer and BioNTech’s vaccine, becoming the first Western country to give such an approval to a coronavirus vaccine. Meanwhile, on Nov. 20, the company submitted a request for an emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The F.D.A. is expected to take several weeks to review the application.

In the summer, the companies began inking deals to deliver large orders to countries around the world. The Trump administration awarded a $1.9 billion contract in July for 100 million doses to be delivered by December and the option to acquire 500 million more doses. Meanwhile, Japan made a deal for 120 million doses, and the European Union arranged to purchase 200 million doses. If their vaccine is authorized, Pfizer and BioNTech expect to manufacture over 1.3 billion doses of their vaccine worldwide by the end of 2021.

Getting the vaccine from the factory to people’s arms could pose some major challenges. Like Moderna’s vaccine, Pfizer and BioNTech’s preparation is based on mRNA, which falls apart unless it’s kept in a deep freeze. As a result, the vaccine will have to be chilled to minus 70 degrees Celsius (minus 94 degrees Fahrenheit) until it’s ready to be injected. Pfizer is building boxes that will keep the vaccines cold as they’re being transported. In addition, like most vaccines currently in trials, it requires two doses. Ensuring that people return after three weeks for their second injection will add an extra layer of complexity to the vaccine’s distribution.

For more details, see How Pfizer’s Vaccine Works.
Updated Dec. 2

PHASE 2

In July, the Indian vaccine-maker Zydus Cadila began testing a DNA-based vaccine delivered by a skin patch. They launched a Phase 2 trial on Aug. 6 and are planning a Phase 3 trial to begin in December.
Updated Nov. 6

PHASE 2

In March, the Trump administration unsuccessfully tried to entice CureVac to move its research on a mRNA vaccine from Germany to the United States. The company moved ahead with its work in Germany and found promising responses in mice. In July, they launched a Phase 1 clinical trial, in which they saw an encouraging response in the immune systems of volunteers. In September, the company started a Phase 2 study. They expect to follow that with a Phase 3 trial in December, which should yield preliminary data in the first quarter of 2021.

In November, CureVac negotiated a deal to provide the European Union with up to 225 million doses of their vaccine. They project manufacturing up to 300 million doses in 2021 and up to 600 million doses the following year. CureVac has collaborated with Elon Musk’s company Tesla on creating mRNA “micro-factories,” which could potentially be deployed around the world to make billions of doses of the vaccine. On Nov. 12, the company announced that its vaccine could be kept in a refrigerator at 41 degrees. Other RNA vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna have to be kept frozen at chillier temperatures.
Updated Nov. 30

PHASE 1 PHASE 2 COMBINED PHASES

Imperial College London researchers have developed a “self-amplifying” RNA vaccine, which boosts production of a viral protein to stimulate the immune system. They began Phase 1/2 trials on June 15 and have partnered with Morningside Ventures to manufacture and distribute the vaccine through a new company called VacEquity Global Health. The researchers expect to know if the vaccine is effective by the end of the year.

PHASE 1 PHASE 2 COMBINED PHASES

On June 30, the Japanese biotechnology company AnGes announced they had started Phase 1 trials on a DNA-based vaccine, developed in partnership with Osaka University and Takara Bio. The company is planning for a Phase 3 trial by the end of the year.
Updated Dec. 2

PHASE 1 PHASE 2 COMBINED PHASES

The California-based company Arcturus Therapeutics and Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore have developed an mRNA vaccine. It has a “self-replicating” design that leads to a greater production of viral proteins. Tests on animals showed that it protected them against infection. In August, Arcturus launched a Phase 1/2 trial at Singapore General Hospital. On Nov. 9, the company announced that an interim analysis of the trial showed that the vaccine produced an immune response that’s in the range of responses seen in people who recovered from Covid-19. Singapore reached an agreement with Arcturus to spend up to $175 million to acquire vaccines when they’re ready.
Updated Nov. 12

PHASE 2

The American company Inovio has developed DNA-based vaccines which are delivered into the skin with electric pulses from a hand-held device. They have vaccines in clinical trials for a number of diseases, and in June they announced interim data from a Phase 1 trial on Covid-19. They found no serious adverse effects, and measured an immune response in 34 out of 36 volunteers. Inovio has yet to publish detailed results of these studies, however, and it is embroiled in several lawsuits with stockholders and a company partner. On Sept. 28, the F.D.A. put the vaccine on a partial hold due to questions about the delivery device. On Nov. 16, Inovio said that the F.D.A. had given them permission to move forward with their Phase 2 / 3 trial.
Updated Nov. 16

PHASE 1

The Korean company Genexine started testing the safety of a DNA-based vaccine in June. They anticipate moving to Phase 2 trials in the fall.
Updated June 24

PHASE 1

In June, Chinese researchers at the Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Suzhou Abogen Biosciences and Walvax Biotechnology announced they would start their country’s first safety trials on a mRNA-based vaccine, called ARCoV. Earlier studies on monkeys reportedly showed protective effects.
Updated June 26

PHASE 1

Researchers at Thailand’s Chulalongkorn University have been developing several potential vaccines for the coronavirus. The furthest along is an mRNA-based vaccine known as ChulaCov19. On Sept. 29, the Chula Vaccine Research Center registered a Phase 1 trial to test it in humans. In an interview with the Bangkok Post, the leader of the project said that up to 30 million doses might be produced for Thailand and six other Asian countries if the vaccine proved to be safe and effective.
Updated Sept. 30

PHASE 1

The Canadian company Entos Pharmaceuticals has created a DNA vaccine for the coronavirus. Most other genetic vaccines carry the gene for the spike protein on the surface of the virus. Entos instead chose the gene for nucleocapsid, a protein that sits inside the virus’s membrane. They are betting it can offer long-lasting immunity. In October, Entos launched a Phase 1 trial in Canada for their vaccine, called Covigenix VAX-001.
Updated Oct. 20

PHASE 1

On Nov. 2, the Canadian company Symvivo announced they had administered a DNA vaccine to their first volunteer in a Phase 1 trial. The DNA is inserted into harmless bacteria, which volunteers swallow in a frozen liquid (the company is working on putting the bacteria into a pill). When the bacteria reach the intestines, the DNA slips into cells in the gut lining, which then make viral proteins.
Updated Nov. 3

PHASE 1

New Jersey-based OncoSec Immunotherapies has developed experimental cancer treatments that deliver genes into tumors. There, the injected genes produce a natural signalling molecule called IL-12, which attracts the attention of immune cells that attack the cancer. In the spring, OncoSec began adapting their technology to make a vaccine for the coronavirus. The vaccine, called CORVax12, consists of a loop of DNA that encodes both the spike protein and IL-12. Causing the body to make extra IL-12 could potentially enhance the immune system’s ability to make antibodies to the spike protein. On Nov. 13, the company registered a Phase 1 trial to test the safety of the CORVax12.
Updated Nov. 13

PRECLINICAL

The French pharmaceutical company Sanofi is developing an mRNA vaccine in partnership with Translate Bio. They have found that it produces a strong antibody response in mice and monkeys and are planning on starting Phase 1 trials by December. It would become Sanofi’s second Covid-19 vaccine candidate in clinical trials, along with their protein-based vaccine.
Updated Oct. 15

PRECLINICAL

Other genetic vaccines in active preclinical development include vaccines from: Applied DNA Sciences, EvviVax and Takis Biotech; DIOSynVax; Elixirgen Therapeutics; ETheRNA; HDT Bio; Infectious Disease Research Institute and Amyris; Mediphage Bioceuticals; the OPENCORONA Consortia; Scancell; the Spanish National Center for Biotechnology and the Spanish National Research Council.
Updated Sept. 30

Viral Vector Vaccines

Vaccines that contain viruses engineered to carry coronavirus genes. Some viral vector vaccines enter cells and cause them to make viral proteins. Other viral vectors slowly replicate, carrying coronavirus proteins on their surface.

PHASE 3

APPROVED FOR LIMITED USE IN CHINA

The Chinese company CanSino Biologics developed a vaccine based on an adenovirus called Ad5, in partnership with the Institute of Biology at the country’s Academy of Military Medical Sciences. In May, they published promising results from a Phase 1 safety trial, and in July they reported that their Phase 2 trials demonstrated the vaccine produced a strong immune response. In an unprecedented move, the Chinese military approved the vaccine on June 25 for a year as a “specially needed drug.” CanSino would not say whether vaccination would be mandatory or optional for soldiers. Starting in August, CanSino began running Phase 3 trials in a number of countries, including Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Russia.
Updated Sept. 24

PHASE 3

APPROVED FOR EARLY USE IN RUSSIA

The Gamaleya Research Institute, part of Russia’s Ministry of Health, has created a vaccine based on two adenoviruses. Preliminary results announced in November indicate that the vaccine has a high efficacy rate in Phase 3 trials.

Gamaleya produced the vaccine, initially called Gam-Covid-Vac, from adenoviruses called Ad5 and Ad26. Both kinds have been tested as vaccines over the years. By combining them, the Russian researchers hoped to avoid a situation in which the immune system could learn to recognize the vaccine as a foreign object that needed to be destroyed.

The researchers launched clinical trials in June. On Aug. 11, President Vladimir V. Putin announced that a Russian health care regulator had approved the vaccine, renamed Sputnik V, before Phase 3 trials had even begun. Vaccine experts decried the move as risky, and Russia later walked back the announcement, saying that the approval was a “conditional registration certificate,” which would depend on positive results from Phase 3 trials. Those trials, initially planned for just 2,000 volunteers, were expanded to 40,000. In addition to Russia, volunteers were recruited in Belarus, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela. On Oct. 17, a Phase 2/3 trial was launched in India.

On Sept. 4, three weeks after Putin’s announcement, Gamaleya researchers published the results of their Phase 1/2 trial. In a small study, they found that Sputnik yielded antibodies to the coronavirus and mild side effects. Meanwhile, Russia negotiated agreements to supply the vaccine to countries including Argentina, Brazil, India, Mexico, and Venezuela.

On Nov. 11, the Russian Direct Investment Fund announced preliminary evidence from their Phase 3 trial indicating that the vaccine is effective. Based on 20 cases of Covid-19 among the trial participants, Russian scientists estimated that the vaccine demonstrated 92 percent efficacy. On Nov. 24, the vaccine makers followed up with an analysis on 39 cases that pointed to the same efficacy rate. They also claimed that a preliminary analysis on some volunteers who had the vaccine for a longer period of time showed a 95 percent efficacy rate, but outside experts questioned that conclusion. As with the three other vaccines with announcements of Phase 3 efficacy — AstraZeneca, Moderna, and Pfizer — the Gamaleya Research Institute has yet to publish their latest findings in a peer-reviewed scientific journal.
Updated Nov. 24

PHASE 3

A decade ago, researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston developed a method for making vaccines out of a virus called Adenovirus 26, or Ad26 for short. Johnson & Johnson developed vaccines for Ebola and other diseases with Ad26 and have now made one for the coronavirus. In March they received $456 million from the United States government to support their move towards production. The vaccine has provided protection in experiments on monkeys. Johnson & Johnson began Phase 1/2 trials in July and launched a Phase 3 trial with up to 60,000 participants in September. Unlike other Phase 3 trials, Johnson & Johnson administered just a single dose instead of two.

In August, the federal government agreed to pay $1 billion for 100 million doses if the vaccine is approved. The European Union reached a similar deal on Oct. 8 for 200 million doses. The company is aiming for production of at least a billion doses in 2021.

On Oct. 12, Johnson & Johnson announced it put its trial on pause to investigate an adverse reaction in a volunteer. The trial resumed eleven days later. Despite the delay, the company expects to get results by the end of the year. On Nov. 16, Johnson & Johnson announced that they were launching a second Phase 3 trial to observe the effects of two doses of their vaccine, instead of just one.
Updated Nov. 16

PHASE 2 PHASE 3 COMBINED PHASES

The British-Swedish company AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford developed a vaccine based on a chimpanzee adenovirus. On Nov. 23, they announced that a preliminary analysis of their Phase 3 trial revealed the vaccine was up to 90 percent effective, depending on the dosage. But uncertainty over the results have clouded its prospects.

The Oxford researchers began by testing the vaccine, known as ChAdOx1, on monkeys. They found that it protected the animals from the disease. In a Phase 1/2 trial, the vaccine developers did not detect any severe side effects. They found that the vaccine raised antibodies against the coronavirus as well as other immune defenses. The vaccine began Phase 2/3 trials in the United Kingdom and India (where it’s known as Covishield). In addition, AstraZeneca launched Phase 3 trials in Brazil, South Africa, and the United States.

On Sept. 6, AstraZeneca halted global trials of the vaccine to investigate one volunteer, who developed a form of inflammation called transverse myelitis. Within a week, the trials began in all countries except the United States. Meanwhile, a newspaper in Brazil reported on Oct. 21 that a volunteer in the trial there died of Covid-19. While AstraZeneca did not comment, the Brazil trial was not paused, suggesting that the volunteer received a placebo. On Oct. 23, the F.D.A. authorized the restart of the U.S. trial.

On Nov. 19, researchers published the first findings from the Phase 2/3 trials in the United Kingdom. They looked in particular at how people at different ages responded to the vaccine, studying 160 people aged 18 to 55 years old, 160 between 56 and 69, and 240 70 years or older. They didn’t observe any serious side effects at any age. Encouragingly, the older volunteers produced about as many antibodies against the coronavirus as the younger ones.

On Nov. 23, AstraZeneca and Oxford announced that the vaccine had good efficacy, based on a study of the first 131 cases of Covid-19 in the trials in the United Kingdom and Brazil. The volunteers all got two doses, but in some cases the first dose was only half strength. Surprisingly, an initial half-strength dose led to 90 percent efficacy, while two standard-dose shots led only to 62 percent efficacy. The researchers speculated that the lower first dose did a better job of mimicking the experience of an infection, promoting a stronger immune response. But only after the initial announcement did it become clear that the low dose version was the result of a mistake in how the vaccines were measured out, not part of the original plan for the trial. It also emerged that the low dose was only tried out on volunteers under 55, raising more questions about how strong the preliminary results were.

Starting in May, AstraZeneca secured a series of agreements to provide vaccines to governments should they prove effective. The United States awarded the project $1.2 billion in support for 300 million doses. In August the European Union reached an agreement for AstraZeneca to deliver 400 million doses if the trials yield positive results. The company has said their total annual manufacturing capacity for the vaccine, if approved, stands at two billion doses.
Updated Nov. 27

PHASE 1

The Italian biotechnology company ReiThera has developed a Covid-19 vaccine, called GRAd-COV2, that is based on an adenovirus that infects gorillas. Working in collaboration with the Lazzaro Spallanzani National Institute for Infectious Diseases in Rome, they launched a Phase 1 trial at the end of July. In November, they announced that the vaccine was well tolerated and produced antibodies, opening the way to a Phase 2/3 trial in the coming months.
Updated Nov. 24

PHASE 1

While many vaccines are given as injections, some vaccines can be taken as a pill. Oral vaccines have been approved for diseases including polio, cholera, and typhoid fever. The small San Francisco company Vaxart specializes in developing oral vaccines. They have created and tested pills for influenza and other diseases. Earlier this year, Vaxart began work on an oral vaccine for Covid-19. It contains an adenovirus called Ad5 (the same viral vector in CanSinoBio’s vaccine and in Russia’s Sputnik V).

When Vaxart gave the pill to mice, they produced antibodies against the coronavirus. Mice don’t suffer symptoms of Covid-19, however, so the researchers then switched to hamsters, which do. In an unpublished study, they found that the vaccine pill not only dramatically reduced the amount of coronavirus in sick hamsters, but also protected them from two important symptoms of the disease: weight loss and swollen lungs. In October, the company began giving the pill to volunteers in a Phase 1 clinical trial.

Although none of Vaxart’s vaccines have yet been licensed, the company’s stock price increased 3,600 percent in the first half of 2020. In June, The New York Times reported, a hedge fund that partly controlled the company sold off most of its shares, netting over $200 million in profits. In the wake of that reporting, the Department of Justice began investigating the company, while a number of shareholder lawsuits were brought against Vaxart, its executives and its board.
Updated Nov. 12

PHASE 1

The American company Merck acquired the Austrian firm Themis Bioscience in June and is working on a vaccine originally developed at Institut Pasteur. The vaccine uses a weakened measles virus that carries a gene for the coronavirus spike protein. Researchers launched a Phase 1 trial in August.
Updated Aug. 12

PHASE 1

In 2019, researchers at the University of Hong Kong and Xiamen University created a nasal-spray vaccine for the flu based on a genetically weakened form of the influenza virus. Earlier this year, they engineered the vaccine to produce part of the coronavirus spike protein as well. On Sept. 9, they received approval to start clinical trials in partnership with Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy.
Updated Sept. 9

PHASE 1

Three decades ago, the German Center for Infection Research developed a smallpox vaccine from a harmless virus called Modified Vaccinia Ankara, or MVA for short. In recent years, they adapted it to create a vaccine for MERS, a disease caused by another coronavirus. This spring, they made an MVA-based vaccine for SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that is causing the Covid-19 pandemic. It carries the gene for the spike protein, which is produced inside cells that it invades. On Sept. 29, the center and a consortium of German universities registered a Phase 1 trial. The vaccine is expected to be ready for approval by the end of 2021.
Updated Sept. 29

PHASE 1

In addition to its project with Themis, Merck is partnering with IAVI on a second viral vector vaccine. It is based on vesicular stomatitis viruses, the same approach Merck successfully used to produce the first approved vaccine for Ebola. They have designed their coronavirus vaccine as a pill, which could potentially make it easier to distribute than syringes for injections. Merck and IAVI received $38 million from the United States government to support their research, and on September 30 they registered a Phase 1 trial.
Updated Aug. 27

PHASE 1

The California-based company ImmunityBio launched a Phase 1 trial of a Covid-19 vaccine in October. The vaccine uses the Ad5 adenovirus, the same one used by CanSinBio and the Gamaleya Institute in Russia. ImmunityBio has engineered the Ad5 virus to carry genes for two genes from the coronavirus. In addition to the spike protein, it also carries the gene for a protein called nucleocapsid. The company hopes that this combination will provoke a strong immune response to the virus. The chairman and C.E.O. of ImmunityBio is billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong, the owner of the Los Angeles Times.
Updated Oct. 27

PHASE 1

In the spring, the Israel Institute for Biological Research started work on a coronavirus vaccine based on vesicular stomatitis viruses. They engineered the viruses to carry the gene for the coronavirus spike protein. On Oct. 25, the Israeli government announced that the vaccine, called Brilife, would be going into Phase 1 trials. If the vaccine is successful in Phase 1 and Phase 2 trials, researchers hope to start Phase 3 trials in spring 2021.
Updated Oct. 26

PHASE 1

Researchers at City of Hope, a California biomedical research institute, created a vaccine based on a weakened form of a virus called Modified Vaccinia Ankara, or MVA for short. They added two coronavirus genes to the virus — one for the spike protein, and one for another protein called nucleocapsid. They hope the combination will enable the vaccine to produce immunity that’s both fast and long-lasting. On Nov. 24 they announced the start of a Phase 1 trial, with hopes for a Phase 2 trial to start in the second quarter of 2021.
Updated Nov. 24

PRECLINICAL

The Swiss company Novartis will manufacture a vaccine based on a gene therapy treatment developed by the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Hospital, Massachusetts General Hospital and the Gene Therapy Program at the University of Pennsylvania. A virus called an adeno-associated virus delivers coronavirus gene fragments into cells. Phase 1 trials are set to begin in late 2020.
Updated Aug. 24

PRECLINICAL

Other viral vector vaccines in active preclinical development include vaccines from: Altimmune; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; Intravacc; KU Leuven; Meissa Vaccines; the Spanish National Center for Biotechnology and the Spanish National Research Council; Thomas Jefferson University and Bharat Biotechnology; Tonix Pharmaceuticals; University of Pittsburgh; Vivaldi Biosciences; Washington University.
Updated Oct. 20

Protein-Based Vaccines

Vaccines that contain coronavirus proteins but no genetic material. Some vaccines contain whole proteins, and some contain fragments of them. Some pack many of these molecules on nanoparticles.

PHASE 3

Maryland-based Novavax makes vaccines by sticking proteins onto microscopic particles. They’ve taken on a number of different diseases this way; their flu vaccine finished Phase 3 clinical trials in March. The company launched trials for a Covid-19 vaccine in May, and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations has invested $384 million in the vaccine. In July the U.S. government awarded Novavax another $1.6 billion to support the vaccine’s clinical trials and manufacturing.

After getting promising results from preliminary studies in monkeys and humans, Novavax launched a Phase 2 trial in South Africa in August. The blinded, placebo-controlled trial on 2,900 people will measure not just the safety of the vaccine but its efficacy. The following month, Novavax launched a Phase 3 trial enrolling up to 15,000 volunteers in the United Kingdom. It is expected to deliver results in early 2021. A larger Phase 3 trial in the United States is expected to launch by the end of December.

In September Novavax reached an agreement with the Serum Institute of India, a major vaccine manufacturer, that they said would enable them to produce as many as 2 billion doses a year. If the trials succeed, Novavax expects to deliver 100 million doses for use in the United States by the first quarter of 2021. On Nov. 4 they announced another agreement to deliver 40 million doses to Australia.
Updated Nov. 30

PHASE 2 PHASE 3 COMBINED PHASES

Canada-based Medicago, partly funded by the cigarette maker Philip Morris, grow vaccines in a plant called Nicotiana benthamiana, a wild species related to tobacco. They deliver virus genes into leaves, and the plant cells then create protein shells that mimic viruses. In July, Medicago launched Phase 1 trials on a plant-based Covid-19 vaccine in combination with adjuvants to boost the immune system’s response to the viral proteins. In that study, they found that an adjuvant made by GSK produced promising levels of antibodies in volunteers. On Oct. 23, the company announced it had reached an agreement with the government of Canada to supply 76 million doses. A Phase 2/3 trial of the vaccine began on Nov. 12.
Updated Nov. 24

PHASE 3

The Chinese company Anhui Zhifei Longcom and the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences partnered to make a vaccine. Their candidate is composed of an adjuvant, along with a section of the spike protein called the receptor-binding domain. They launched Phase 2 trials in July, followed by a Phase 3 trial with 29,000 volunteers in December.
Updated Dec. 2

PHASE 1 PHASE 2 COMBINED PHASES

On Aug. 18, the head of epidemiology at Cuba’s public health ministry announced that the Finlay Vaccine Institute in Havana would start a clinical trial on a vaccine for Covid-19. The vaccine, called Soberana 1, contains a part of the spike protein, called RBD, along with two extra ingredients: proteins from a bacteria and aluminum hydroxide. These ingredients, known as adjuvants, boost the immune system’s response to the coronavirus RBD.
Updated Oct. 28

PHASE 1 PHASE 2 COMBINED PHASES

APPROVED FOR EARLY USE IN RUSSIA

On Aug. 26, the Vector Institute, a Russian biological research center, registered a Phase 1/2 trial for a coronavirus vaccine they call EpiVacCorona. The vaccine contains small portions of viral proteins, known as peptides. According to newspaper reports, the EpiVacCorona trials had already begun by then. On October 14, Vladimir Putin announced that Russia has granted regulatory approval to EpiVacCorona, making it the second vaccine to receive that designation after the Gamaleya Institute’s Sputnik V vaccine. Like the Sputnik vaccine, EpiVacCorona received approval before a Phase 3 trial to demonstrate that it was safe and effective. That trial is expected to start later this year.
Updated Oct. 14

PHASE 1 PHASE 2 COMBINED PHASES

In addition to their mRNA vaccine, Sanofi developed a Covid-19 vaccine based on viral proteins. They produced the proteins with engineered viruses that grow inside insect cells. GSK supplemented these proteins with adjuvants that stimulate the immune system. The vaccine is based on the same design Sanofi used to create Flublok, an approved vaccine for influenza. The companies launched a Phase 1/2 clinical trial in September. They plan to start a Phase 3 trial in December and hope to know if the vaccine is safe and effective by the middle of 2021.

Starting before their clinical trials began, Sanofi negotiated several major deals to supply the vaccine, including a $2.1 billion agreement with the United States to provide 100 million doses. On Sept. 18 they closed another deal with the European Union for 300 million doses for an unspecified amount, and later reached an agreement with Canada for up to 72 million doses. In addition, Sanofi agreed to provide 200 million doses to COVAX, an international collaboration to deliver the vaccine equitably across the world. They have plans to make up to one billion doses in 2021.
Updated Oct. 28

PHASE 1 PHASE 2 COMBINED PHASES

SpyBiotech, a company spun off from the University of Oxford, announced in September that the first volunteers in an Australian Phase 1/2 trial were receiving their Covid-19 vaccine. The researchers created the vaccine from a mixture of proteins. Some of the proteins, from hepatitis B viruses, assemble themselves into hollow shells. The researchers decorated these shells with part of the coronavirus spike protein. The Serum Institute of India, which licensed the technology from SpyBiotech, is running the trials.
Updated Sept. 24

PHASE 2

In July, researchers at West China Hospital of Sichuan University published a study in Nature describing a vaccine made from the RBD region of the spike protein that could protect mice and monkeys from the coronavirus. To make the vaccine, researchers encode the RBD region in a gene, which they insert into a virus. They then infect insect cells with the virus, causing them to make the molecule in huge amounts. On Aug. 24, they launched a Phase 1 trial, and on Nov. 16 they moved to Phase 2.
Updated Nov. 20

PHASE 1 PHASE 2 COMBINED PHASES

After the SARS epidemic in 2002, Baylor College of Medicine researchers began developing a vaccine that could prevent a new outbreak. Despite promising early results, support for the research disappeared. Because the coronaviruses that cause SARS and Covid-19 are very similar, the researchers revived the project in partnership with the Texas Children’s Hospital. The researchers have found that the Covid-19 vaccine produces antibodies in mice. The Indian company Biological E licensed it in August and launched a Phase 1/2 trial in November, combining the viral proteins with an adjuvant made by Dynavax. If trials confirm that the vaccine works, they hope to potentially make a billion doses a year.
Updated Nov. 16

PHASE 1

Clover Biopharmaceuticals has developed a vaccine containing the spike protein from coronaviruses. To further stimulate the immune system, the company is testing so-called adjuvants made by British drugmaker GSK and the American company Dynavax. Investments from CEPI will support the development of manufacturing that could lead to the production of a billion doses a year. Clover’s formula looks to be especially durable; the vaccine can sit out at room temperature for a month and remain viable.

Clover launched a Phase 1 trial in June, and in December they announced that the vaccine triggered a high level of antibodies. The company is following up on the promising results by launching a Phase 2 / 3 trial with the GSK adjuvant by the end of 2020.
Updated Dec. 5

PHASE 1

A vaccine from Australia’s University of Queensland delivers viral proteins altered to draw a stronger immune response. Experiments on hamsters showed that the vaccine protected them from the coronavirus. The university launched Phase 1 trials in July, combining the proteins with an adjuvant made by CSL. If the results are positive, CSL will advance late stage clinical trials by the end of 2020. In September the vaccine makers reached an agreement with the Australian government to deliver 51 million doses if the trials deliver positive results. They expected their first supply of the vaccines to be ready in mid-2021.
Updated Sept. 8

PHASE 1

The Australian company Vaxine developed a vaccine that combines viral proteins with an adjuvant that stimulates the immune system. A Phase 1 trial began over the summer, and Phase 2 trials are expected to commence by the end of the year.
Updated Sept. 29

PHASE 1

A second plant-based vaccine is in development at Kentucky BioProcessing, an American subsidiary of British American Tobacco, the maker of Lucky Strike and other cigarettes. Like Medicago, Kentucky BioProcessing engineers a wild relative of tobacco called Nicotiana benthamiana to make viral proteins. The company previously used this technique to make a drug called Zmapp for Ebola. After preclinical testing in the spring, they registered a Phase 1 trial for their coronavirus vaccine in July. The trial is scheduled to start in December.
Updated Dec. 2

PHASE 1

Taiwan-based vaccine maker Medigen is making a vaccine made of a combination of spike proteins and an adjuvant from Dynavax. After a series of promising experiments on animals, they began injecting volunteers for a Phase 1 trial in early October.
Updated Oct. 13

PHASE 1

Taiwan-based vaccine manufacturer Adimmune got permission to launch a Phase 1 trial on Aug. 20. The vaccine contains the RBD section of the virus’s spike protein.
Updated Aug. 20

PHASE 1

New York-based COVAXX, a subsidiary of United Biomedical, has created a vaccine containing parts of several viral proteins. On Sept. 11 they registered a Phase 1 trial in Taiwan. They have reached an agreement with authorities in Brazil to run their Phase 2/3 trial there. On Nov. 25, Covaxx announced agreements with countries including Brazil, Ecuador, and Peru to deliver more than 140 million doses for $2.8 billion.
Updated Nov. 25

PHASE 1

In the spring, researchers at the University of Tübingen in Germany created a vaccine made of eight parts of two viral proteins, along with an immune-stimulating adjuvant. In September they launched a Phase 1 trial.
Updated Sept. 15

PHASE 1

In October, Cuba’s Finlay Vaccine Institute launched clinical trials on their second experimental vaccine for the coronavirus. Known as Sovereign 2, it contains the RBD part of the coronavirus spike protein. The RBD fragment is fused to a standard tetanus vaccine, which makes it stable. It also uses aluminum hydroxide.
Updated Oct. 28

PHASE 1

The Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology of Cuba announced on Nov. 26 that it was beginning a Phase 1 trial of a vaccine delivered as a nasal spray. Known as Mambisa, the vaccine contains a piece of the coronavirus spike protein called the receptor-binding domain, along with a protein from the hepatitis B virus that stimulates the immune system. The name refers to women who fought in Cuba’s nineteenth-century wars of independence.
Updated Nov. 30

PHASE 1

In addition to their nasal spray vaccine, the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology of Cuba also launched a separate trial at the end of November on a vaccine injected into the muscle. It contains a piece of the coronavirus spike protein called the receptor-binding domain. The vaccine is called Abadala, named after a poem by the nineteenth-century poet José Marti.
Updated Nov. 30

PHASE 1

SK Bioscience, a South Korean vaccine maker, designed a Covid-19 vaccine based on pieces of the spike protein of the coronavirus. In August they found that the vaccine triggers a strong production of antibodies in monkeys. They launched a Phase 1 trial at the end of November.
Updated Dec. 2

PHASE 1 ?

On July 18, North Korea’s State Commission of Science and Technology announced on their web site that they had started clinical trials on a vaccine based on part of the coronavirus spike protein. It’s hard to independently evaluate the claim from the isolated dictatorship. The commission claimed to have tested the vaccine on animals, but provided no data. Four months after their announcement, South Korean lawmakers said they had foiled an attempt by North Korea to hack South Korean companies developing coronavirus vaccines. So far, North Korea has not released any further information about the trials they supposedly are running.
Updated Dec. 2

PRECLINICAL

A vaccine in development by the University of Pittsburgh, called PittCoVacc, is a skin patch tipped with 400 tiny needles made of sugar. When placed on the skin, the needles dissolve and deliver virus proteins into the body. Its creators are planning to start clinical trials in late 2020.
Updated Aug. 27

PRECLINICAL

Other protein-based vaccines in active preclinical development include vaccines from: Adaptive Phage Therapeutics; AdaptVac and Bavarian Nordic; Applied Biotechnology Institute; Artes Biotech; Axon Neuroscience; BiOMVis and University of Trento; City College of New York and TechnoVax; EpiVax; GeoVax; Heat Biologics; IBio and CC-Pharming; Icosavax and University of Washington; ImmunoPrecise Antibodies; IMV; Instituto Butantan; Intravacc; IrsiCaixa; Izmir Biomedicine and Genome Center; National Autonomous University of Mexico; Navarrabiomed; NidoVax; OncoGen; Oragenics; OSE Immunotherapeutics; Osivax; PDS Biotechnology; Pontifical Catholic University of Chile; Saiba; SK Bioscience; University of Alberta; University of Amsterdam; University of Georgia and EpiVax; University of Saskatchewan and VIDO-InterVac; University of Virginia; UNSAM-CONICET; Vaxform; Vaxil-Bio; VBI Vaccines; Verndari; VIDO-InterVac; Voltron Therapeutics; Walter Reed Army Institute of Research; Wyss Institute and Harvard University; Yisheng Biopharma.
Updated Sept. 25

Inactivated or Attenuated Coronavirus Vaccines

Vaccines created from weakened coronaviruses or coronaviruses that have been killed with chemicals.

PHASE 3

APPROVED FOR LIMITED USE IN U.A.E.

The state-owned Chinese company Sinopharm is currently testing two vaccines based on inactivated coronaviruses. One of them was created by the Wuhan Institute of Biological Products. The Phase 1/2 trial showed that the vaccine produced antibodies in volunteers, some of whom experienced fevers and other side effects. They launched Phase 3 trials in the United Arab Emirates in July, and in Morocco and Peru the following month. On Sept. 14, the U.A.E. gave emergency approval for Sinopharm’s vaccine to use on health care workers, and soon government officials and others were also receiving it.

In China, Sinopharm has been even more aggressive in distributing its vaccines. Over the summer, the company later said, the Chinese government gave it approval to inject both vaccine candidates into government officials, health care workers, and other select groups. By November, the chairman of Sinopharm said, almost a million people in China had received the vaccines. On Nov. 25, Sinopharm announced it had filed an application to market its vaccines in China–despite the fact that it has not yet finished its Phase 3 trials that would e demonstrate that they are safe and effective.
Updated Nov. 27

PHASE 3

APPROVED FOR LIMITED USE IN U.A.E.

In addition to their Wuhan vaccine, Sinopharm also began testing an inactivated virus vaccine developed by the Beijing Institute of Biological Products.
Updated Nov. 27

PHASE 3

APPROVED FOR LIMITED USE IN CHINA

Sinovac Biotech, a private Chinese company, developed an inactivated vaccine called CoronaVac. In June the company announced that Phase 1/2 trials on 743 volunteers found no severe adverse effects and produced an immune response. Sinovac published the details of the trial in November in a medical journal, showing a comparatively modest production of antibodies. Only a Phase 3 trial would demonstrate if that was enough to protect people from Covid-19.

In July, Sinovac launched a Phase 3 trial in Brazil, followed by others in Indonesia and Turkey. While Sinovac has yet to release late-stage trial data, on Oct. 19 officials in Brazil said that it was the safest of five vaccines they were testing in Phase 3 trials.

Reuters reported that the Chinese government gave the Sinovac vaccine an emergency approval for limited use in July. In October, authorities in the eastern Chinese city of Jiaxing announced they were giving CoronVac to people in relatively high-risk jobs, including medical workers, port inspectors and public service personnel.

Meanwhile, Sinovac has been preparing to manufacture the vaccine for global distribution, reaching an agreement to supply Indonesia with at least 40 million doses by March 2021. In September, Yin Weidong, the CEO of Sinovac, said the company planned on worldwide distribution of the vaccine in early 2021 — including the United States.

On Nov. 9, the Brazilian government announced they had paused the country’s Sinovac trial the previous month because of an adverse event. The details of the pause were murky, raising suspicions that politics were involved. Two days after the announcement, the trial was allowed to resume.
Updated Nov. 20

PHASE 3

In collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research and the National Institute of Virology, the Indian company Bharat Biotech designed a vaccine called Covaxin based on an inactivated form of the coronavirus. Studies on monkeys and hamsters found that it provided protection against infection. In June, Bharat’s coronavirus vaccine became the first created in India to go into clinical trials. While the results of the Phase 1/2 trials have yet to be published, an executive at Bharat told India Today that about 85 to 90 percent of the 1,000 volunteers produced antibodies to the coronavirus and experienced no serious adverse effects due to Covaxin. On Oct. 23, the company announced they were initiating a Phase 3 trial. Bharat expects results in early 2021 and anticipates distributing the vaccine next June.
Updated Nov. 23

PHASE 2

Researchers at the Institute of Medical Biology at the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, which has invented vaccines for polio and hepatitis A, started a Phase 2 trial of an inactivated virus vaccine in June.
Updated June 23

PHASE 1 PHASE 2 COMBINED PHASES

The Chumakov Center at the Russian Academy of Sciences has developed an inactivated coronavirus vaccine. On Oct. 14, the TASS news agency reported that clinical trials of the vaccine would begin in Kirov and St. Petersburg on Oct. 19. On its web site, the center stated that it would finish the first phase of trials the following month.
Updated Oct. 14

PHASE 1

The central Asian nation of Kazakhstan began research on a vaccine made from inactivated coronaviruses over the summer. On August 28, their Research Institute for Biological Safety Problems registered a Phase 1 trial on the vaccine, known as QazCovid.
Updated Aug. 28

PHASE 1

Shenzhen Kangtai Biological Products is a Chinese company that makes vaccines for diseases such as hepatitis B and measles. In August, AstraZeneca reached an agreement with them to supply China with their mRNA vaccine. In October Shenzen Kangtai launched a Phase 1 trial on 180 volunteers of its own vaccine, based on inactivated coronaviruses.
Updated Oct. 16

PHASE 1

On Nov. 5, Turkey’s Erciyes University announced they had begun injecting volunteers with an inactivated coronavirus vaccine. It is the first clinical trial of a coronavirus vaccine developed in Turkey.
Updated Nov. 16

PHASE 1

New York-based Codagenix develops vaccines based on live attenuated viruses, but with a twist: they create the viruses from scratch. Researchers rewrite the genome of viruses, introducing hundreds of mutations. Then they manufacture RNA molecules encoding the rewritten genes. In special host cells, the molecules can give rise to full-blown viruses. But thanks to their numerous mutations, they are too weak to cause Covid-19 when they’re delivered in a vaccine. After successful experiments in animals, a Phase 1 trial of their coronavirus vaccine was registered on Nov. 6.
Updated Nov. 10

PRECLINICAL

Other inactivated or attenuated coronavirus vaccines in active preclinical development include vaccines from: Valneva; Vivaldi Biosciences; Washington University; Western University.
Updated Nov. 7

Repurposed Vaccines

Vaccines already in use for other diseases that may also protect against Covid-19. Repurposed vaccines are not included in our vaccine count.

PHASE 3

The Bacillus Calmette-Guerin vaccine was developed in the early 1900s as a protection against tuberculosis. The Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Australia is conducting a Phase 3 trial called the BRACE to see if the vaccine partly protects against the coronavirus.

OTHER CLINICAL TRIALS

Other repurposed vaccines are in clinical trials being conducted by: the Bandim Health Project; Crown Coronation (Washington University and partner universities); Hôpitaux de Paris; Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center New Orleans; the BADAS Study (Texas A&M University, Baylor College of Medicine, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center); India’s National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis; BCG-CORONA (UMC Utrecht and Radboud University); University of Campinas; University Health Network, the Serum Institute of India, the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology and Verity Pharmaceuticals; Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation and the University of Oklahoma; Vakzine Projekt Management.
Updated Sept. 25

Tracking the Coronavirus

Additional reporting by Denise Grady, Andrew E. Kramer, Hari Kumar, Cao Li and Carlos Tejada.

Note: Early versions of the tracker combined two vaccines by Sinopharm into one entry. Subsequent reporting confirmed they are two different vaccines. A previous version of the tracker stated that Pfizer had reached a deal with the EU, when in fact the deal was made by AstraZeneca.

Sources: World Health Organization, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Center for Biotechnology Information, New England Journal of Medicine.