Reuters Health News Summary

The Phase 2b trial study of NVX-CoV2373 will be conducted on about 2,665 healthy adults and will evaluate the safety and immunogenicity in about 240 medically stable, HIV-positive adults, the company said in a statement https://reut.rs/3g0sRzb. South Korea battles worst coronavirus outbreak in months, warns of tighter rules South Korea warned on Monday of tighter novel coronavirus restrictions as new outbreaks appeared, including one linked to a church where more than 300 members of the congregation have been infected but hundreds more are reluctant to get tested.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. Novavax begins mid-stage study of COVID-19 vaccine in South Africa

U.S. drug developer Novavax Inc said on Monday that it is starting a mid-stage study of its experimental COVID-19 vaccine in South Africa, as the country experiences a surge in coronavirus cases. The Phase 2b trial study of NVX-CoV2373 will be conducted on about 2,665 healthy adults and will evaluate the safety and immunogenicity in about 240 medically stable, HIV-positive adults, the company said in a statement https://reut.rs/3g0sRzb. South Korea battles worst coronavirus outbreak in months, warns of tighter rules

South Korea warned on Monday of tighter novel coronavirus restrictions as new outbreaks appeared, including one linked to a church where more than 300 members of the congregation have been infected but hundreds more are reluctant to get tested. The outbreak linked to the Sarang Jeil Church in Seoul is the country's biggest in nearly six months and led to a tightening of social distancing rules on Sunday. What you need to know about the coronavirus right now

Here's what you need to know about the coronavirus right now: Concern over U.S. autumn resurgence Czechs must wear face masks again in many places from September 1, expect tough autumn

The Czech government will make the wearing of face masks compulsory again from Sept. 1 on public transport and in many indoor public venues following a resurgence of coronavirus infections and ahead of what it expects to be a tough autumn. The Czech Republic was among the first countries in Europe to order people to wear masks in most public places in March but had gradually lifted the requirement as infections fell in late spring. But infections have again started to trend higher. Testing of CanSino's COVID-19 candidate vaccine begins in Russia

A late-stage trial of a COVID-19 candidate vaccine from CanSino Biologics Inc has started in Russia, registration records showed, as the Chinese pharmaceutical firm steps up testing abroad to close in on regulatory approval. The Ad5-nCoV vaccine already has approval for use by China's military after early and mid-stage trials, and further late-stage trials are being lined up for Mexico and Saudi Arabia. Vietnam reports 14 more COVID-19 infections

Vietnam's health ministry reported 14 more coronavirus infections on Monday, bringing the total number of cases in the Southeast Asian country to 976, with 24 fatalities. Nearly 500 cases are linked to the central city of Danang, where a new outbreak was detected late in July after more than three months without domestic transmission nationwide. Hong Kong records 44 new coronavirus cases as social distancing restrictions extended

Hong Kong reported 44 new coronavirus cases on Monday as the government announced an extension to social distancing measures aimed at controlling further spreading of the virus, which has seen a resurgence in the Asian financial hub since early July. While the number of daily cases have come down from triple digits in recent weeks, authorities have cautioned residents from becoming complacent, warning that the situation remained "severe". Explainer: Source of New Zealand coronavirus outbreak still a mystery

Almost a week after the discovery of New Zealand's first locally transmitted coronavirus outbreak in more than three months, its origin remains a mystery. The Pacific island nation had benefited from its remoteness early in the pandemic, when Ardern swiftly closed off the international border and imposed one of the world's toughest lockdowns. Those measures stamped out local transmission for 102 days. India's COVID-19 death toll surpasses 50,000 as pandemic spreads beyond big cities

India's COVID-19 death toll topped the 50,000 mark on Monday and the total number of recorded cases neared 2.65 million as the outbreak spread further into smaller towns and rural areas, the latest government data showed. The world's second-most populous country recorded 57,981 new coronavirus infections in the last 24 hours, raising the total to 2,647,663, while an additional 941 deaths raised the overall death toll to 50,921. China's Shenzhen adds more virus tests for frozen food imports

China's Shenzhen city is requiring additional tests on frozen meat and seafood, after finding the coronavirus on chicken wings from Brazil last week. The city government said on its official microblog on Monday it had set up a central warehouse where all imported foods already cleared through customs would need to undergo further tests before being sold or processed in the city.