Ottawa commits $23M to VIDO-InterVac to ramp up research on COVID-19

Ottawa is giving $23 million to VIDO-InterVacin Saskatoon.

The Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization International Vaccine Centre is based at the University of Saskatchewan.

Half of the money is earmarked to build a pilot-scale manufacturing plant on campus to accelerate vaccine development.

"The $12 million enables us to build the facility to good manufacturing practices standards as required for human vaccine production," said VIDO-InterVacdirector Volker Gerdts.

"We expect to begin vaccine production in a little more than a year."

• Go inside the high-security lab where scientists search for a coronavirus vaccine

There is currently no vaccine for the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

VIDO-InterVac is the first lab in the country to have a vaccine candidate in animal testing.

The vaccine was made in February, and researchers expect to know in about four weeks whether the vaccine works in an animal model. Clinical testing of this vaccine in humans could start as early as this fall.

The balance of the money will go to operational funding for high-containment laboratories.