Last Updated : Oct 26, 2020 07:58 PM IST | Source: Moneycontrol.com

Coronavirus wrap October 26 | Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar tests positive; Israel to start human trials for vaccine from Nov 1

Globally, there have been over 4.28 crore confirmed cases of COVID-19 and over 11.51 lakh people have died so far.

Moneycontrol News

India's COVID-19 caseload mounted to 79,09,959 with 45,148 new infections. The death toll climbed to 1,19,014 with 480 new fatalities, the data updated at 8 am showed.

A total of 71,37,228 people have recuperated from COVID-19 so far. There are 6,53,717 active cases of coronavirus infection in the country at present.

Maharashtra's COVID-19 tally remains the highest among Indian states and Union territories. The ministry updates its numbers a day after states release their data.

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Globally, there have been over 4.28 crore confirmed cases of COVID-19 and over 11.51 lakh people have died so far.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Frequently Asked Questions

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How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.

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Here are all the latest updates:

>> Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar has tested positive for COVID-19. He has been hospitalised.

>> Mizoram administration said a lockdown will be imposed in the Aizwal Municipal Corporation area from 4:30 am on October 27 till 4:30 am of November 3.

>> The COVID-19 vaccine being developed by the University of Oxford produces an immune response in both elderly and young people and adverse reactions were lower among the elderly, British drug maker AstraZeneca Plc said on October 25. The vaccine, being developed by Oxford and AstraZeneca, triggers protective antibodies and T-cells in older age groups, news agency Reuters reported.

>> The Maharashtra government on October 26 further reduced the rates for RT-PCR COVID-19 tests conducted by private laboratories.

>> Ban on public events can bring down COVID-19 transmission rate by over 24 percent, a Lancet study has said.

>> Israel said it will start human trials of COVID-19 vaccine from November 1.

>> Italy's Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte tightened nationwide COVID-19 restrictions on October 25 after the country recorded a record number of new cases, despite opposition from regional heads and street protests over curfews.

>> France may be experiencing 1 lakh new COVID-19 cases per day – two times more than the latest figures, Professor Jean-François Delfraissy, who heads the scientific council that advises the French government on the pandemic, said.
First Published on Oct 26, 2020 07:58 pm

tags #coronavirus #Current Affairs #India