|
© iStock – |
Researchers at Oxford University have begun work to modify their vaccine against COVID-19 in order to make it more effective against the Delta variant, reports The Independent. The news comes amid statistics showing that the death toll from coronavirus in the UK has reached record levels since March.
Professor Sarah Gilbert’s team is working on the new drug, the same scientists behind the AstraZeneca vaccine, which was first released in January.
Cases of the Delta variant are on the rise again in the United Kingdom. About 49,156 people tested positive for coronavirus on Monday, an increase of 22% on a weekly basis and the highest level since the end of the lockdown in the country. The increase in prevalence comes amid declining levels of protection among older age groups.
A source from Oxford said that the work of scientists in the development of the new vaccine is at a very early stage, but insisted that it will not be difficult to make the necessary modifications, given the nature of the technology behind the vaccine.
–
