The world's first coronavirus human challenge study will begin in the United Kingdom within a month, following approval from that country’s clinical trials ethics body.
It will involve up to 90 carefully selected, healthy adult volunteers aged 18 to 30 being exposed to Covid-19 in a safe and controlled environment.
The initial trial aims to establish the smallest amount of virus needed to cause infection, probe the body's immune response, and explore how the virus is passed on from person to person.
Participants will be closely monitored by experts 24 hours a day following their exposure to the virus.
The virus used will be the variant that was circulating in the UK last year.
The study has been supported by a £33.6 million investment from the UK Government, and after the initial trial, will move on to expose participants that have received COVID vaccines to the virus.
Challenge trials are not new. This approach has previously played a role in the development of treatments for other diseases including cholera and flu.
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