WHO clears China's CanSino COVID vaccine for emergency use
The World Health Organization said Thursday that it has granted an emergency use authorization for the coronavirus vaccine made by China's CanSino Biologics, the 11th such shot to receive the green light.
The UN health agency said the single-dose CanSino vaccine was found to be about 92% effective against severe COVID-19 and 64% effective in preventing people from getting symptoms of the disease. WHO's expert vaccine group recommended the vaccine for everyone age 18 and over.
The CanSino vaccine uses a harmless virus called an adenovirus to deliver the spike protein of the coronavirus into the body, which then prompts an immune response. The technology is similar to vaccines made by Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca, which use different adenoviruses.
Last year, China's top infectious diseases official acknowledged that the country's homegrown vaccines offered low protection against COVID-19 and that mixing them with booster doses of the novel messenger RNA vaccines might be needed.
Amid the emergence of COVID-19 variants like Delta, Omicron and its subvariants, messenger RNA vaccines have appeared to prove more effective when compared to more traditionally made vaccines.
WHO's authorization of CanSino means that the UN-backed COVAX effort to distribute vaccines to poor countries can now purchase and deliver vaccines made by the Chinese company. Last year, COVAX signed a deal to buy more than half a billion Chinese vaccines made by Sinopharm and Sinovac.
It's unclear how many of those doses are being used. Many countries relying on COVAX for their immunization programs have expressed a preference for mRNA vaccines made by Moderna and Pfizer.
____
What questions do you have about Omicron?
With the emergence of a new COVID-19 variant of concern, labelled Omicron, CTVNews.ca wants to hear from Canadians with any questions.
Tell us what you’d like to know when it comes to the Omicron COVID-19 variant.
To submit your question, email us at dotcom@bellmedia.ca with your name, location and question. Your comments may be used in a CTVNews.ca story.
COVID-19 COVERAGE
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Child labour remains an increasing source of Canada’s everyday products: NGO
Many Canadians remain unaware of the involvement of forced child labour in the products they buy, according to non-profit agency World Vision Canada.
Protesters at U.S. Supreme Court decry abortion ruling overturning Roe v. Wade
Hundreds of protesters descended on the U.S. Supreme Court on Saturday to denounce the justice's decision to overturn the half-century-old Roe v. Wade precedent that recognized women's constitutional right to abortion.
'I landed in a safe haven': Uganda refugees celebrate LGBTQ2S+ community for first time
As Pride festivities kick off around the world, many refugees are celebrating the LGBTQ2S+ community for the first time.
Commonwealth falls short of condemning Russia as Trudeau prepares for G7
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau headed to the G7 summit in Germany on Saturday without a consensus from the Commonwealth to condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but with a chorus of countries calling for help to overcome the fallout of the war.
WHO panel: Monkeypox not a global emergency 'at this stage'
The World Health Organization said the escalating monkeypox outbreak in nearly 50 countries should be closely monitored but does not warrant being declared a global health emergency.
Tear gas used to disperse protesters outside Arizona Capitol building, officials say
After the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade on Friday, holding that there is no longer a federal constitutional right to an abortion, protesters and supporters of the ruling gathered at the high court's building in Washington, D.C., and in other cities nationwide.
Conservative MPs free to attend 'freedom' protests this summer: Bergen
With the nation's capital bracing for anticipated anti-mandate 'freedom' movement protests during Canada Day weekend, interim Conservative Leader Candice Bergen says her MPs are free to attend.
Vancouver's English Bay Barge still hasn't budged
A barge that ran aground near Vancouver's English Bay last year quickly became an accidental attraction, drawing selfie-seekers and inspiring T-shirt designs. But after seven months, residents seem to have grown weary of its hulking presence on the shoreline.
With war, Kyiv pride parade becomes a peace march in Warsaw
Ukraine's largest LGBTQ rights event, KyivPride, is going ahead on Saturday. But not on its native streets and not as a celebration.
Canada
-
Vancouver's English Bay Barge still hasn't budged
A barge that ran aground near Vancouver's English Bay last year quickly became an accidental attraction, drawing selfie-seekers and inspiring T-shirt designs. But after seven months, residents seem to have grown weary of its hulking presence on the shoreline.
-
Commonwealth falls short of condemning Russia as Trudeau prepares for G7
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau headed to the G7 summit in Germany on Saturday without a consensus from the Commonwealth to condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but with a chorus of countries calling for help to overcome the fallout of the war.
-
Is Canada heading into a recession? This is what you need to know
As gas prices and food costs continue to escalate and another interest rate hike is expected next month, many Canadians are wondering if a recession is coming and how to prepare for a possible economic downturn.
-
'I landed in a safe haven': Uganda refugees celebrate LGBTQ2S+ community for first time
As Pride festivities kick off around the world, many refugees are celebrating the LGBTQ2S+ community for the first time.
-
Child labour remains an increasing source of Canada’s everyday products: NGO
Many Canadians remain unaware of the involvement of forced child labour in the products they buy, according to non-profit agency World Vision Canada.
-
Missing Kelowna woman found dead, family confirms
The family of Chelsea Cardno says the body found on flooded farmland adjacent to Mission Creek Friday night has been identified as the missing Kelowna woman.
World
-
Biden signs landmark gun measure, says 'lives will be saved'
U.S. President Joe Biden on Saturday signed the most sweeping gun violence bill in decades, a bipartisan compromise that seemed unimaginable until a recent series of mass shootings, including the massacre of 19 students and two teachers at a Texas elementary school.
-
Senator in 2010 deposition: 13-year-olds can consent to sex
In 2010, U.S. Senator James Lankford testified that he believed a 13-year-old could consent to sex.
-
Boris Johnson seeks to stay in power in U.K. until the mid-2030s
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Saturday he aims to remain in power until the middle of the next decade, despite calls for him to quit, which would make him the country's longest continuously serving leader in 200 years.
-
He took his school to the U.S. Supreme Court in the 1980s for pulling 'objectionable' books. Here's his message to young people
Steven Pico, who 40 years ago joined a legal fight against his school board's banning of 'objectionable' books to the U.S. Supreme Court when he was 17, says the 'freedom to read a book is the foundation of our democracy.'
-
Norway shaken by attack that kills 2 during Pride festival
A gunman opened fire in Oslo's nightlife district early Saturday, killing two people and leaving more than 20 wounded in what the Norwegian security service called an 'Islamist terror act' during the capital's annual LGBTQ Pride festival.
-
Protesters at U.S. Supreme Court decry abortion ruling overturning Roe v. Wade
Hundreds of protesters descended on the U.S. Supreme Court on Saturday to denounce the justice's decision to overturn the half-century-old Roe v. Wade precedent that recognized women's constitutional right to abortion.
Politics
-
What key legislation passed, what's in limbo after Parliament breaks for summer
Now that the House and Senate have adjourned for the summer, CTVNews.ca breaks down what key pieces of legislation passed in the final days of the spring session, and what key government bills will be left to deal with in the fall.
-
Indigenous conservation Canada's way of the future, environment minister says
Tanya Ball began her career as a social worker for the Kaska Dene First Nation. Now she runs a land guardian program, working to monitor and protect a vast stretch of the band's northern British Columbia wilderness.
-
Conservative MPs free to attend 'freedom' protests this summer: Bergen
With the nation's capital bracing for anticipated anti-mandate 'freedom' movement protests during Canada Day weekend, interim Conservative Leader Candice Bergen says her MPs are free to attend.
Health
-
Women have a higher chance of developing long COVID than men, study finds
New research has found that women are 'significantly' more likely than men to suffer from long COVID syndrome, in addition to developing different symptoms of the disease.
-
New digital platform aims to accelerate research on brain disorders
The Ontario Brain Institute is playing a key role in open science and brain health research with the release of new clinical data that will help scientists around the world advance investigations into pediatric neurological conditions.
-
German lawmakers vote to end ban on 'advertising' abortions
German lawmakers voted Friday to end the country's ban on advertising abortions, which has in the past led to doctors being prosecuted for providing information about the procedure to potential patients.
Sci-Tech
-
Florida team hauls in nearly 5-metre, 100-kilogram Burmese python
A team of biologists recently hauled in the heaviest Burmese python ever captured in Florida, officials said.
-
Microsoft: Russian cyber spying targets 42 Ukraine allies
Coinciding with unrelenting cyberattacks against Ukraine, state-backed Russian hackers have engaged in "strategic espionage" against governments, think tanks, businesses and aid groups in 42 countries supporting Kyiv, Microsoft said in a report Wednesday.
-
NASA's Psyche mission to an unexplored metal world comes to a halt
NASA's first spacecraft designed to study a metallic asteroid won't be launching this year as planned, according to an announcement made by the agency on Friday.
Entertainment
-
McCartney joined by Springsteen, Grohl in epic Glastonbury show
Paul McCartney was joined by special guests Bruce Springsteen and Dave Grohl in an epic performance at Glastonbury on Saturday night that spanned the first Beatles demo to some of his latest recordings.
-
Phoebe Bridgers leads anti-Supreme Court chant after court overturns Roe v. Wade
Phoebe Bridgers vented her frustration at America's high court during her Glastonbury Festival set on Friday night after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
-
Lengthy dispute in B.C.'s film and TV industry ends with new contract
A 15-month dispute in British Columbia's film and television industry has ended with the ratification of a new contract for creative and logistical staff working on productions shot in the province.
Business
-
Number of job vacancies grows in April to just over one million
Statistics Canada says the number of job vacancies at the beginning of April hit just over one million, up more than 40 per cent compared with a year earlier.
-
Labour shortage: Food, hotel industries continue to be hardest hit by lack of workers
Despite record low levels of unemployment, many sectors are suffering from labour shortages in the second quarter with restaurants and hotels continuing to be amongst the worst hit, a new Statistics Canada survey finds.
-
These U.S. companies will cover travel costs for employees who need an abortion
After the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Friday to overturn Roe v. Wade, corporate giants from a range of industries pledged to provide support and financial assistance for employees — and, in some cases, their dependents — seeking abortions in states that outlaw the procedure.
Lifestyle
-
'It just made my heart warm': Winnipeg bus driver's act of kindness captured on video
An act of kindness from a Winnipeg bus driver is being shared by a passenger who says it warmed his heart to witness.
-
U.K. museum unveils first official portrait of Prince William and Kate together
A new painting of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge was revealed to the public on Thursday. The painting – the first official portrait of Prince William and his wife, Catherine, together – is on display at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, U.K.
-
Have you seen this artwork? 'Invaluable' high school student display stolen in Coquitlam, B.C.
Mounties in Coquitlam are appealing to the public for help tracking down two pieces of artwork that were allegedly stolen from a high school art display.
Sports
-
Canadians picked 6th and 7th in NBA draft
Canadians Bennedict Mathurin and Shaedon Sharpe took very different paths to the NBA, but their pro dreams were realized just minutes apart on Thursday.
-
MLB's Houston Astros throw combined no-hitter against New York Yankees
Major League Baseball's Houston Astros have thrown a combined no-hitter against the New York Yankees on Saturday at Yankee Stadium.
-
U.S. House passes bipartisan resolution calling for Brittney Griner's release
The U.S. House on Friday passed a bipartisan resolution calling on the Russian government to immediately release WNBA star Brittney Griner.
Autos
-
Toyota recalls electric car for faulty wheel that may detach
Toyota is recalling 2,700 bZ4X crossover vehicles globally for wheel bolts that could become loose, in a major setback for the Japanese automaker's ambitions to roll out electric cars.
-
'It's just about survival at this point': High gas prices affecting Canadians' summer travel plans
A majority of Canadians who intend to travel this summer say high gas prices are affecting those planned getaways, a pair of recent surveys show.
-
Two dead after Chinese electric car falls three storeys
Two people involved in testing for the electric car brand NIO died when one of its vehicles fell three stories from a Shanghai parking structure, the company said Friday.
