Oxford University is launching a human trial of a potential coronavirus vaccine, with the daunting aim of making a successful jab available to the public later this year.
Of the more than 100 research projects around the world to find a vaccine - described by the United Nations as the only route back to "normality" - seven are currently in clinical trials, according to the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Such trials are already under way in China and the United States and are due to begin at the end of this month in Germany, where the federal vaccine authority gave the green light yesterday.