Turkey gives homegrown COVID vaccine candidate as booster shot

By Ramazan Kaya

KAYSERI, Turkey (AA) – As the Phase 3 human trials of Turkey’s coronavirus vaccine candidate continue, health professionals are giving a Turkovac jab as the third booster shot.

According to a written statement by the Erciyes University in the central Kayseri province, Turkovac, a locally produced inactive vaccine candidate, is given to volunteers who have received two doses of Chinese vaccine Sinovac and have not caught the coronavirus yet.

The vaccine is given to people aged 18 to 59 years old.

Orhan Yildiz, infectious diseases and clinical microbiology department head, said the Turkovac jab was already given to the volunteers who had not been vaccinated yet, and now it is also being used as a booster shot for those who have been vaccinated with Sinovac.

Erdogan Ozkan, a volunteer, said he was glad to be part of domestic efforts for COVID-19 vaccine production, encouraging all Turkish citizens to get a Turkovac shot without any concerns.

*Writing by Ali Murat Alhas