MOSCOW, November 23. /TASS/. The World Health Organization (WHO) hopes that a nasal coronavirus vaccine, which is being developed in Russia, will be able to prevent infections, WHO Representative to Russia Melita Vujnovic said on Tuesday.
She stressed that face masks are an effective anti-coronavirus measure, "along with vaccination, which saves lives." "Regrettably, it doesn’t prevent the infection but it reduces the virus burden, reduces the Delta stain’s contagiousness but cannot prevent it completely. We need a new vaccine and we hope that the new vaccines, including nasal ones, [Gamaleya Center director] Academician Alexander Gintsburg spoke about yesterday will be able to do that (prevent the infection - TASS)," she said.
According to Vujnovic, today, it is necessary to focus on observing basic hygienic measures to curb further spread of the infection. She noted that up 500,000 human lives could be saved in Europe if 95% of people wear masks in public places. "We now have data on masks. If 95% of people wear masks in public places, even in small offices, Europe will be able to save 500,000 lives by February," she said.
Deputy director of the Gamaleya National Research Center of Epidemiology and Microbiology, Denis Logunov, said earlier that the use of the nasal vaccine will begin shortly after the clinical tests.
In October, the Gamaleya Center received a Russian health ministry permit for the second phase of clinical tests of a nasal form of the coronavirus vaccine. The Center’s director Alexander Gintsburg said that the nasal form would be an addition to the regular vaccine to ensure an extra barrier to the infection.