Britain scientists have started a study to test if the Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine can help protect people against Covid-19, as part of a large-scale global trial.

The BCG varanine was developed centuries ago to fight against tuberculosis (TB). It is also reported to protect against respiratory infections.

The new global trial will test the BCG vaccine’s theory that it could help protect against Covid-19.

The University of Exeter stated that it is leading aBCG vaccination, the UK arm of the trial to decrease the COVID-19 impact in the healthcare workers' (BRACE) trial.

Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI is coordinating the BRACE trial in Melbourne, Australia. The UK joins the study centers in Australia, Spain, the Netherlands, and Brazil in the largest trial of its kind.

The trail is reported to recruit over 10,000 healthcare staff and the participants will be given the BCG vaccine or a placebo injection.

The routine BCG vaccine was sopped in the UK in 2005 due to the reduced rate of TB patients in the general population.

The trail was initially planning to recruit 1,000 participants in the UK who work in care homes and various other community healthcare facilities.

The University of Exeter Medical School’s Professor John Campbell confirmed that BCG has shown to increase immunity in a generalized way, which might provide some protection against Covid-19. Professor Campbell is the UK lead on the BRACE.

He expressed in excitement about contributing to the large-scale, international BRACE study where his team is looking forward to finding if the BCG vaccine could help protect people who are at COVID-19 risk. If it protects people, then many lives can be saved by topping up or administering this already available and affordable vaccination.

Earlier studies stated that the BCG vaccine can decrease vulnerability to a variety of infections caused by viruses including the ones like the novel coronavirus causing Covid-19.

Source: https://www.businessinsider.in/science/health/news/uk-launches-clinical-trial-of-bcg-vaccine-against-covid-19/articleshow/78605521.cms