LONDON – The COVID-19 vaccine developed by Astrazeneca plc and Oxford University has been approved by the U.K regulator, with the first doses being shipped on Dec. 30 and a mass vaccination program due to begin on Jan. 4. AZD-1222, now named COVID-19 Vaccine Astrazeneca, is authorized for emergency use and will require two doses for durable effect.

CAJICA, Colombia – The 33 countries across Latin America, Central America and the Caribbean are taking vastly different approaches to secure, acquire and distribute COVID-19 vaccines. A handful of the region’s wealthier countries have signed deals with vaccine suppliers or plan to manufacture them, but it is unclear how others will source or distribute vaccines to protect roughly 657 million people. Many are counting on the COVAX initiative.

HONG KONG – Cambridge, U.K.-based Astrazeneca plc has resumed phase I/II trials in Japan for AZD-1222, the experimental, adenovirus vector-based candidate coronavirus vaccine that it is co-developing with the University of Oxford.

CAJICA, Colombia – Latin American countries are rushing to sign deals to gain access to SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, with Brazil, the largest in the region, right in the race. Already, the country has the third most COVID-19 cases globally, behind only India and the U.S.

The Astrazeneca plc and Oxford University phase III trial of their adenovirus-based coronavirus vaccine is back up and running in the U.K. after a week’s worth of study and decision-making. The company said it still plans to report data from the study by the end of this year.

A phase III trial of AZD-1222, an experimental coronavirus vaccine developed by Astrazeneca plc and Oxford University, has been paused due to an unexplained illness that occurred in the U.K., the company said on Sept. 8.