US Pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson said on Monday that its Covid-19 vaccine trial has been temporarily paused due to an ‘unexplained illness’ in one of its participants.
Johnson & Johnson said that the participant’s illness was being assessed and that more information would be released after further investigation.
Johnson & Johnson’s JNJ-78436735 vaccine is one of four large-scale, final-stage COVID-19 vaccine trials underway in the U.S.
It is the second time that a front-runner developer has paused a trial in the race to create a viable vaccine.
British drugmaker AstraZeneca last month temporarily stopped tests of its vaccine candidate after a trial participant fell ill.
Johnson & Johnson did not say what the illness was nor where the participant lived.
“We must respect this participant’s privacy. We’re also learning more about this participant’s illness, and it’s important to have all the facts before we share additional information,” the company said.
The independent Data Safety Monitoring Board, which oversees the trial, has said it will review what happened and decide whether it is safe to resume the trial.
