A clinical trial of the Novovax coronavirus vaccine gets underway next week in Jacksonville for children 12- to 17-years-old.
Dr. Michael Koren is with the Jacksonville Center for Clinical Research, which is leading the study here.
Koren said Thursday on First Coast Connect with Melissa Ross that Novovax differs from other vaccines currently in use.
Where Johnson & Johnson uses the actual virus, and Pfizer and Moderna employ Messenger RNA to trigger the body’s immune response, he said Novovax uses a different method combat the coronavirus.
“Novovax makes something called a protein therapeutic. They genetically engineer the spike protein. So using a small concentration of spike protein, we’re able to get the immune system ready to fight off COVID-19.”
Koren said the Novovax study is what’s called a cross-over, meaning that every participant will have gotten the vaccine by the end of the blind trial.
Parents can enroll their children in the study at jaxresearch.com. The entire interview with Koren is available on Thursday’s First Coast Connect with Melissa Ross, which encores Thursday night at 8 on WJCT News 89.9.
Bill Bortzfield can be reached at bbortzfield@wjct.org, 904-358-6349 or on Twitter at @BortzInJax.
