Argentina joins Chinese coronavirus vaccine trial, maker says

Refiles to correct typo in headline

BEIJING, Aug 22 (Reuters) - Argentina joined Peru, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates in approving Phase 3 clinical trials for a coronavirus vaccine developed by China National Biotec Group (CNBG), the company said late Friday.

As China forges ahead in the global race to develop a vaccine to curb the COVID-19 pandemic and as cases within China dwindle, CNBG needs research participants from other countries for testing.

Phase 3 trials, which usually involve several thousand participants, allow researchers to gather data on the efficacy of potential vaccines for final regulatory approvals.

CNBG will partner with Argentina's ELEA in the vaccine trial, the Chinese company said in a statement late Friday.

The experimental vaccine by CNBG, a unit of state-owned pharmaceutical giant China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm), received approval from the UAE in June for a Phase 3 trial and has since recruited 15,000 volunteers.

The company said on Thursday that Peru and Morocco also approved the trials.

CNBG has also obtained approval from Bahrain for a Phase 3 study designed to involve around 6,000 participants.

(Reporting by Roxanne Liu and Yew Lun Tian; Editing by William Mallard)

((LunTian.Yew@thomsonreuters.com;))

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