Russia Produces First Batch of Covid Vaccine for Animals
upstart writes in with an IRC submission for c0lo:
Russia Produces First Batch Of Covid Vaccine For Animals:
Russia has produced the world's first batch - 17,000 doses - of COVID-19 vaccines for animals, its agricultural regulator said on Friday.
Russia registered Carnivac-Cov in March after tests showed it generated antibodies against COVID-19 in dogs, cats, foxes and mink.
The first batch will be supplied to several regions of Russia, the regulator Rosselkhoznadzor said in a statement.
Companies from a dozen countries in Europe, Middle East, and Asia have expressed interest.
Also at Forbes which adds:
While a vaccine for animals may not seem like a priority in the midst of a pandemic where many humans do not have access to them, safeguarding animal populations is an important aspect of long-term disease control. The virus responsible for Covid-19 is, experts believe, highly likely to have spilled over into humans from animals, which has happened with many major diseases including influenza (flu), Ebola and HIV. Humans are also capable of spreading the disease to animals-including pets, like cats and dogs, and agricultural animals, like mink-where dangerous mutations can possibly develop and spread back into humans.
The U.K., which monitors cases of Covid-19 in some animals, reported two instances of cats seeming to have caught the virus from their owners. One, a four-month-old kitten, died after developing breathing difficulties. While there is no evidence that domestic animals can transmit the virus to humans, scientists warned of the need to monitor transmission in case they can act as a "viral reservoir."
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