Coronavirus vaccine tracker | Check out the latest developments from around the world as on October 29

As the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, several vaccine candidates are in various stages of trials. Here are all the latest updates on coronavirus vaccines and their progress.

1 | Russia begins production of second COVID-19 vaccine despite pending Phase 3 trials: Russia has started mass production of its second COVID-19 vaccine developed by Vector State Virology and Biotechnology Centre in Novosibirsk, despite the candidate not completing Phase 3 trials. Anna Popova, the head of Russia’s public-health watchdog on October 27 said that output of the vaccine will be ramped up by 2020-end. President Vladimir Putin announced approval of the vaccine on October 14. Authorities are hoping the candidate vaccines will help stall trajectory of the pandemic with minimum economic impact.

2 | Next crop of COVID-19 vaccine developers take more traditional route: The handful of drugmakers dominating the global coronavirus vaccine race are pushing the boundaries of vaccine technology. The next crop under development feature more conventional, proven designs. The world will need several different vaccines to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, given the sheer size of global need, variations in effects on different populations, and possible limits of effectiveness in the first crop. Many leading candidates now in final-stage testing are based on new, largely unproven technology platforms designed to produce vaccines at speed.

3 | Pfizer says COVID-19 vaccine still possible in 2020 despite data lag: Pfizer executives expressed measured optimism Tuesday over the prospect of providing a coronavirus vaccine in 2020 even as they signaled key data on the vaccine would not be released before the US election. Pfizer Chief Executive Albert Bourla said the drug giant could supply some 40 million doses in the United States in 2020 if clinical testing proceeds as expected and regulators approve a vaccine.

4 | West Bengal govt asks medical establishments to send list of workers to be given COVID-19 vaccine: The West Bengal government has asked all state-run and private medical establishments to send details of frontline health care workers (HCWs) and other staff who would be administered COVID-19 vaccine on a priority basis, an official said on Thursday. All medical establishments like medical colleges (allopathic, homoeopathic and AYUSH), health centres, private healthcare units and polyclinics have been asked to send the list of workers, the senior official of the Health department said.

5 | GSK, Sanofi to make 200 million doses available for COVID-19 vaccine alliance: French drugmaker Sanofi SA and Britain's GlaxoSmithKline plan to make 200 million doses of their COVID-19 vaccine candidate available to the vaccine allocation plan co-led by GAVI and the World Health Organization. The companies said on October 28 they have signed a statement of intent with vaccine alliance GAVI, which is coordinating the global plan known as COVAX. COVAX aims to deliver 2 billion vaccine doses around the world by the end of 2021, and more than 180 nations have joined the plan.

6 | Dr Reddy's hopes to finish Phase 3 trials of COVID-19 vaccine by March-May: Dr Reddys Laboratories on October 28 said the Phase 3 trials of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine for COVID 19 in India to be conducted by it are expected to be completed by the end of March depending on approvals and data validation. "Phase-3, we should finish somewhere by March and then of course it depends on the ability to compile the data, obtain the approvals etc. It can be as early as end of March or April /May and beyond. It depends on the results. Its a combination of phase-2, global phase-3 and phase-3 in India," Dr Reddys Chief Executive Officer Erez Israeli said.