<p>China has approved emergency use of Sinovac Biotech's Covid-19 vaccine in people aged between three and 17, its chairman Yin Weidong told state TV late on Friday.</p>.<p>China's mass vaccination drive, which administered 723.5 million doses of vaccines as of June 3, is currently only open to those aged 18 and above.</p>.<p>When Sinovac's vaccine will be offered to younger groups depends on health authorities formulating China's inoculation strategies, Yin told state TV in a live interview.</p>.<p><strong>Read more: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/who-approves-sinovac-covid-19-vaccine-2nd-chinese-made-dose-listed-992648.html" target="_blank">WHO approves Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine, 2nd Chinese-made dose listed </a></strong></p>.<p>Yin said minors have lower priority for vaccination against the coronavirus compared with the elderly, who face a higher risk of severe symptoms after infection.</p>.<p>Preliminary results from Phase I and II clinical trials showed the vaccine could trigger an immune response in three to 17-year-old participants, and most adverse reactions were mild.</p>.<p>State-backed drugmaker Sinopharm, which has two shots using similar technology to Sinovac's product, is also submitting data for clearance in younger groups. A vaccine from CanSino Biologics', adopting a different technique, has entered a Phase II trial involving those aged between six and 17.</p>.<p>Sinovac has also completed a Phase II clinical trial where participants were injected with a third booster dose after completing two regular shots, Yin said.</p>.<p>Participants saw 10 fold increase in antibody levels compared with previous levels in a week, and 20 fold in half a month, Yin said.</p>.<p>Yin cautioned that Sinovac still needs to complete longer-term observation of antibody duration before it can make a recommendation to authorities about when a third dose should be given. </p>
<p>China has approved emergency use of Sinovac Biotech's Covid-19 vaccine in people aged between three and 17, its chairman Yin Weidong told state TV late on Friday.</p>.<p>China's mass vaccination drive, which administered 723.5 million doses of vaccines as of June 3, is currently only open to those aged 18 and above.</p>.<p>When Sinovac's vaccine will be offered to younger groups depends on health authorities formulating China's inoculation strategies, Yin told state TV in a live interview.</p>.<p><strong>Read more: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/who-approves-sinovac-covid-19-vaccine-2nd-chinese-made-dose-listed-992648.html" target="_blank">WHO approves Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine, 2nd Chinese-made dose listed </a></strong></p>.<p>Yin said minors have lower priority for vaccination against the coronavirus compared with the elderly, who face a higher risk of severe symptoms after infection.</p>.<p>Preliminary results from Phase I and II clinical trials showed the vaccine could trigger an immune response in three to 17-year-old participants, and most adverse reactions were mild.</p>.<p>State-backed drugmaker Sinopharm, which has two shots using similar technology to Sinovac's product, is also submitting data for clearance in younger groups. A vaccine from CanSino Biologics', adopting a different technique, has entered a Phase II trial involving those aged between six and 17.</p>.<p>Sinovac has also completed a Phase II clinical trial where participants were injected with a third booster dose after completing two regular shots, Yin said.</p>.<p>Participants saw 10 fold increase in antibody levels compared with previous levels in a week, and 20 fold in half a month, Yin said.</p>.<p>Yin cautioned that Sinovac still needs to complete longer-term observation of antibody duration before it can make a recommendation to authorities about when a third dose should be given. </p>