chargement...
Moroccan Moncef Slaoui, former head of GlaxoSmithKline's vaccine division, has been called upon to lead the operation of US President Donald Trump to develop a vaccine against the coronavirus.
Two White House officials, quoted by CNN, said General Gustave Perna had also been selected to help oversee operation «Warp Speed». Moncef Slaoui will act as senior advisor while Perna will serve as chief operating officer, overseeing logistics.
NEWS: Trump plans to name Moncef Slaoui, ex head of GlaxoSmithKline’s vaccines division, to help lead US effort to speed coronavirus vaccine, I’m told. Doc’s history includes overseeing vaccine pipelines such as Cervarix, a cervical cancer vaccine.
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) May 13, 2020
The appointments come two weeks after Trump announced the move to quickly speed up production and organize plans to distribute a vaccine, which experts say may not be ready for months or even years.
A number of people have been considered over the past week for the post of chief vaccine officer in addition to Moncef Slaoui, said an official, including Elias Zerhouni, Algerian-American medical radiologist and former chief of the National Institutes of Health under President George W. Bush and Art Levinson, CEO of Calico.
Slaoui led the global GSK vaccine business from 2015 to 2017. He helped develop vaccines to prevent childhood rotavirus gastroenteritis, cervical cancer and shingles, CNN said.
