Johnson & Johnson halts COVID-19 study after unexplained illness found on trial patient

Washington, Oct 13: Johnson & Johnson said that its COVID-19 vaccine study has been put on hold temporarily owing to an unexplained illness in a trial patient.

Earlier this month J&J had joined a list of vaccine makers that have moved an experimental coronavirus shot into late-stage human studies in the United States. The company has since then begun dosing around 60,000 volunteers. This marked the first big trial of a vaccine that may work just after one shot.

It may be recalled that AstraZeneca Plc had temporarily halted tests of its vaccine after a trial participant fell ill. While it remains halted in the US, the trials have resumed in a number of other countries.