BEIJING, March 17 (Xinhua) - A COVID-19 vaccine developed by the Institute of Microbiology of Chinese Academy of Sciences has obtained the greenlight for emergency use in China, Reuters reported on Monday quoting the institute's statement.

In this Jan. 15, 2021, file photo, a medical worker gives a coronavirus vaccine shot to a patient at a vaccination facility in Beijing. (AP Photo)

It marks China's fifth vaccine eligible for some scale of use, the report said.

Among the four vaccines China has approved for general public use, three had been approved for small-scale emergency vaccination before gaining clearance for inoculating the wider public, it added.

Jointly developed by the Institute of Microbiology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Anhui Zhifei Longcom Biopharmaceutical Co., Ltd., the vaccine was issued with a clinical research permit from the National Medical Products Administration on June 19, 2020.