Coronavirus LIVE Updates: US Sees 67,632 New Cases; Lancet Says Human Trial Data of AstraZeneca Vaccine to be Out by July 20

Coronavirus LIVE Updates: Early-stage human trial data on a vaccine being developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University will be published on July 20, The Lancet medical journal said on Wednesday, Reuters reports.

The United States has reported the highest record of 67,632 new coronavirus cases in 24 hours. US Disease Expert Dr Anthony Fauci, meanwhile, predicted on Wednesday the country will meet its goal of a Covid-19 vaccine by year's end and was unmoved by the prospect that China would get there first.

While there are no guarantees, "I feel good about the projected timetable," Fauci told Reuters in an interview.

His comments follow promising early stage data for the Moderna Inc's coronavirus vaccine, released on Tuesday, that was developed by scientists at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which Fauci directs.

Closer home, the Delhi University will conduct the online open book examinations - which have continued to get delayed due to Covid-19 - for final year undergraduate and postgraduate students from August 10 to August 31, it said on Wednesday.

However, DU said, students unable to appear in the exams in August will get another chance. The varsity had informed the Delhi High Court last week that it has decided to postpone the Open Book Examinations (OBE), scheduled from July 10, for final year undergraduate courses to next month.

Here are the LIVE Updates on the Covid-19 Pandemic:

◕ The NIMHANS has come out with guidelines that define a framework to address the mental health needs of healthcare personnel in COVID-19 treatment settings. The guidelines also aim to provide technical inputs to guide healthcare personnel to help themselves and their colleagues in distress.

◕ Five more Border Security Force (BSF) personnel have tested positive for novel coronavirus in Mizoram, taking the states COVID-19 tally to 238, officials said on Wednesday.

◕ A COVID-19 treatment centre with over 1000 beds has been set up at Calicut University in Malappuram. K Gopalakrishnan, District Collector, Malappuram says, "Patients who have tested positive but don't have any symptom will be treated here."

◕ Oklahoma's governor said on Wednesday he had been diagnosed with COVID-19, one of the highest elected U.S. politicians to test positive for the disease, as new coronavirus infections in his state and neighboring Texas surged by record numbers for a second straight day.