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Covaxin, which is based on an inactivated virus platform, is widely being used in the nationwide vaccination drive currently underway.
As India intensifies its fight against Covid-19, more measures are being undertaken to defeat the virus. The Subject Expert Committee (SEC) on Covid-19, under the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI), has given its nod to Bharat Biotech to go ahead with its plan to experiment on the mixed-dosing of two of its vaccines. Bharat Biotech will be mixing Covaxin, which is administered intramuscularly, with a nasal inoculation based on a different vector.
Trials
Covaxin, which is based on an inactivated virus platform, is widely being used in the nationwide vaccination drive currently underway. Along with Serum Institute’s Covishield, they are the most significant Covid vaccines in India.
The second vaccine proposed to be mixed with Covaxin is based on an adenovirus vector that is currently in its Phase II clinical trials.
After the SEC puts forth its recommendations, the final nod will come from the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO).
The SEC has approved another mixed-dose trial, which will involve Covaxin and Covishield. This trial will be executed by a team from Vellore’s Christian Medical College.
Sputnik V- AstraZeneca experiment
The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) on July 30 said that trials– where the first component of Sputnik V was combined with the AstraZeneca-Oxford University vaccine– suggested that this combination doesn’t lead to any adverse results.
The RDIF also said the preliminary data from the interim analysis of the immunogenicity of the combined vaccines have exhibited a high safety portfolio and there were no adverse events or cases of Covid-19 after the inoculation.
This is the world’s first study that saw the combination of two vaccine doses. The preliminary data pertaining to the immunogenicity of the combined use of the Sputnik V and AstraZeneca vaccine is expected to be published in August.
The studies on the combination of these vaccines had begun in Azerbaijan in February. So far 50 volunteers have been inoculated and new participants are being invited to join the free trial.
The RDIF has begun partnerships with other vaccine makers to conduct joint experiments and studies on the combination of Sputnik V’s first component with other vaccines. It had entered into partnerships with R-Pharm, AstraZeneca and Gamaleya Centre in December 2020.