Top research doctors at the big hospital systems in SE Michigan are collaborating on corona virus.
The top docs are seeking federal approval to carry out two national drug trials to find a vaccine and a treatment. It would involve volunteers from the Detroit area.
They conduct similar research every year in other areas involving patients and volunteers.
The physicians are from Henry Ford, Ascension, Beaumont, Detroit Medical Center, and Wayne State.
If approved quickly, the study could begin in a matter of weeks.
The first drug trial of a vaccine developed by the drug company Moderna began earlier this month in Seattle. Moderna said it could take 18 months to bring the vaccine to market.
The second trial uses plasma from patients who have recovered from COVID-19 to trigger the immune system in patients who have it. That trial is being done by Takeda, based in Japan.