Sarah Gilbert on how her team is making the Oxford coronavirus vaccine

By Michael Le Page

Sarah Gilbert is professor of vaccinology at the University of Oxford, leading its research on flu vaccines and emerging pathogens

Photos by John Cairns

Last week was a big one for Sarah Gilbert at the University of Oxford, leader of the team that created the “Oxford vaccine”, a front runner in the race for a coronavirus vaccine. On 20 July, her team published results showing that the vaccine produces the desired immune responses in people.

Gilbert says she took a moment to pause ahead of the announcement – she had most of the day before, a Sunday, off.

That is a …