Covid-19: Global cases top 61.5 lakh
Global coronavirus cases continued to rise across the world as around 1.25 lakh cases were reported in the last 24 hours till Sunday morning.
Confirmed coronavirus cases around the world have jumped to 6,150,483, including 124,103 during the period.
Besides, the death toll from the virus has reached 370,506 with 4,084 more reported during the period, according to Worldometer.
Of the currently infected 3,045,431 patients, 2,991,928 are in mild condition while 53,503 are in serious or critical condition.
So far, 2,734,546 people have made recovery from the disease in different countries.
Coronavirus is affecting over 213 countries and territories around the world and two international conveyances.
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the coronavirus crisis a pandemic on March 11.
Bangladesh has so far confirmed 44,608 cases and 610 deaths.
New Zealand reports no new Covid-19 case for
9 consecutive days
New Zealand has reported no new case of COVID-19 for nine days in a row, said a statement of the New Zealand Ministry of Health on Sunday.
New Zealand’s combined total number of confirmed and probable cases stays at 1,504, of which 1,154 are confirmed, it said.
The country currently has 1,481 people reported as having recovered from COVID-19, unchanged from Saturday. The death toll remained at 22.
The total number of tests completed to date is 280,983, an increase of 2,111.
New Zealand is currently at COVID-19 Alert Level two, and public gatherings of fewer than 100 people are allowed.
General public are encouraged to download the NZ COVID Tracer app, developed by the New Zealand government to facilitate contact tracing and case identification. It has currently recorded 468,000 registrations, an increase of 10,000 since Saturday.
Russia plans coronavirus vaccine clinical trials in two weeks: Report
Russian scientists plan to start clinical trials within two weeks on a vaccine to combat the novel coronavirus, the health minister was quoted as saying on Saturday as authorities approved the country’s first anti-COVID-19 drug.
Russia has the world’s third-highest toll of coronavirus infections after the United States and Brazil, and Kremlin officials have said the nation’s researchers are working on almost 50 different vaccine projects.
“The tests are under way and we plan to start clinical trials in the next two weeks,” Health Minister Mikhail Murashko was quoted as saying by the TASS news agency. He said volunteers had been selected to take part in the trials.
Drugmakers worldwide are rushing to develop treatments and vaccines for the virus that has caused 364,000 deaths globally.
The Russian Direct Investment Fund said the Health Ministry had approved Avifavir for the treatment of COVID-19.
It was developed on the basis of a drug known generically as favipiravir.
RDIF said Avifavir had proved highly effective in treating patients with coronavirus in the first phase of its clinical trials. The final stage of clinical trials is under way, with the participation of 330 patients.
There are currently about 10 coronavirus vaccines being tested in humans and experts have predicted that a safe and effective vaccine could take 12 to 18 months from the start of development.
One of the Russian vaccine projects is being undertaken by the state-run Vektor Institute in Siberia, whose director general, Rinat Maksyutov, said on Saturday he hoped to complete clinical trials in mid-September.
Maksyutov said vaccine trials on animals had been successful. – News Desk
