The shelved University of Queensland-CSL coronavirus vaccine is back in development, with new data revealing it sparked an immune response in 99% of recipients in early testing.

Clinical trials of the much-anticipated UQ-CSL V451 vaccine came to a disappointing halt last December, after initial data from 120 healthy volunteers, aged 18-55, revealed many who received the vaccine had also recorded false positive tests for HIV.

The problem stemmed from the ground-breaking technology used in the vaccine, a molecular clamp made of HIV fragments that held the SARS-CoV-2 spike gylcoprotein that was used to elicit an immune response.

The subsequent decision to axe phase II and III trials was a huge blow to the research team and Australia’s vaccination program, coming just three months after the Federal Government committed to buy 51 million doses if late-stage clinical trials were successful.