Researchers in Uzbekistan are testing an "edible transgenic tomato vaccine" as part of the efforts to contain the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Scientists from the Center for Genomics and Bioinformatics of the Academy of Sciences are working to develop an edible vaccine against the virus by changing the genetics of tomatoes, a statement from the country's Innovative Development Ministry said on Friday.

It was noted that scientists cloned the crown part of the coronavirus detected in the country and placed it in the plant cell, and as a result, these plant cells acted as a vaccine.

Seedlings in the laboratory of the center will grow tomatoes in the form of a vaccine after two months, and people who eat these tomatoes are expected to produce antibodies against the virus, added the statement.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA), Zabardast Buriyev, deputy director of the Center for Genomics and Bioinformatics, said that scientific studies on this vaccine started in January and that the experiments on animals continue.

The first phase of clinical trials will begin as soon as the animal experiments are finished, he added.