Australia’s first locally developed mRNA COVID-19 vaccine has been created in Victoria and will begin phase 1 trials within months. Acting Victorian Premier James Merlino announced on Sunday that the state government would invest $5 million into the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (MIPS) to manufacture doses of mRNA vaccine candidates. “This is an incredibly important, incredibly exciting step that we are making in our nation,” Merlino told reporters. “This will get us on a pathway to local manufacturing capability.” The investment comes as part of the $50 million (US$37 million) mRNA research fund that was announced in April. MIPS has already received $3 million (US$2.2 million) to cover the costs of the Phase 1 clinical trial. Monash University’s Vice-Chancellor Margaret Gardner said the investment highlighted the institution’s world-class capability in the field of mRNA technology. Professor Colin Pouton, the leader of the MIPS team, said the vaccine under development …