Vanquishing the virus: the race to make vaccines for Covid-19

The extraordinarily rapid development of effective treatments against the coronavirus is a triumph of biotechnology, says Dr Mike Tubbs. He reviews the story and explains what it means for investors.

MoneyWeek coronavirus vaccine cover illustration
(Image credit: MoneyWeek coronavirus vaccine cover illustration)

Many MoneyWeek readers will have had their first Covid-19 vaccine jab by now; a few will have had their second. The advent of the vaccines is a story of clever biotechnology deployed with lightning speed, illustrating the sector’s rapid development over the last two decades. The Covid-19 virus was only sequenced (genetically mapped) in mid-January 2020 and the first two vaccines approved in the UK were the Pfizer/BioNTec treatment in early December 2020 and the AstraZeneca/Oxford University one in late December – 11 and 12 months later respectively.

The International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations says that the normal timescale for vaccine development is between ten and 15 years. Prior to the Covid-19 vaccines, the record for vaccine development was four years for the mumps treatment, which emerged in 1967.

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Dr Mike Tubbs

Highly qualified (BSc PhD CPhys FInstP MIoD) expert in R&D management, business improvement and investment analysis, Dr Mike Tubbs worked for decades on the 'inside' of corporate giants such as Xerox, Battelle and Lucas. Working in the research and development departments, he learnt what became the key to his investing; knowledge which gave him a unique perspective on the stock markets.

Dr Tubbs went on to create the R&D Scorecard which was presented annually to the Department of Trade & Industry and the European Commission. It was a guide for European businesses on how to improve prospects using correctly applied research and development. He has been a contributor to MoneyWeek for many years, with a particular focus on R&D-driven growth companies.