CEPI will provide up to AU $12.3 million to support a global clinical trial led by the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) on the potential merits of administering a reduced COVID-19 booster dose. The trial which will include up to 3300 healthy adults across Australia, Indonesia and Mongolia coincides with a large-scale global initiative to increase access to COVID-19 vaccines.
“Our project, announced today with CEPI, will specifically examine how best to vaccinate communities with follow-up booster shots and the timings around these subsequent booster doses. And while fractional doses could provide the opportunity for great savings for countries, they are also likely to produce less side effects, which will improve the acceptability of booster doses” MCRI’s Professor Kim Mulholland.
A similar strategy, known as fractionation has previously been used to maximize global vaccine supply during outbreaks of Yellow fever, Polio and most recently, for the experimental rotavirus vaccine.
To fund this important work, CEPI’s Global Pandemic Preparedness Summit will take place next month, bringing together leading figures from across the world to work on this urgent global health initiative.
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New global vaccine trial launched to evaluate fractional COVID-19 booster shots