Havana, August 20 (RHC)-- Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel has congratulated the group of scientists who created the first Cuban vaccine candidate against COVID-19, which was officially presented on Wednesday.

"Congratulations to you, brave, committed, original, creative and innovative revolutionary scientists.  #We areCuba #We areContinuity #FidelForever," the president wrote on his Twitter account.

The vaccine, named Soberana 01, was presented on Wednesday at a meeting with the scientists and experts working directly on the COVID-19 vaccine.

There, the development strategy of Soberana 01 was announced.  Soberana already has the required permits to start the clinical trial phases, which will begin on Monday, August 24th.

Vicente Vérez Bencomo, director general of the Finlay Institute of Vaccines and project leader, said that the Cuban vaccine candidate presents low risks, few uncertainties and encouraging results in the pre-clinical phase.

He said the experimental batches induced high anti-RBD antibody titers in mice and rabbits.  He added that based on those indicators, on July 28 Soberana 01 was tested for the first time in humans, precisely in three of its researchers, who in an initial evaluation also presented a high immune response.