What is India doing to avoid the third wave of Corona?

Amidst warnings of a third wave, India has made rapid strides towards the production of the corona virus vaccine. India has now finally approved the emergency use of Johnson & Johnson’s single dose vaccine.

The vaccine is said to be up to 85% effective, which will be available to India under a supply deal with India’s indigenous vaccine manufacturer Biological E.

Although it is not yet clear when India will be able to get the vaccine, but Johnson & Johnson says that it is too early to tell about the end date.

So far, the use of Kovishield, Covaccine and Sputnik V vaccine of Russia has been approved in India and so far 500 million doses have been given in India.

Vaccine in india

Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine is the second foreign vaccine in India that has been approved for emergency use.

This is allowed under a new policy that does not require local clinical trial data to allow manufacturers that have been approved by the World Health Organization or regulators from the US, EU, UK and Japan.

In June, the government allowed Indian pharma company Cipla to import Moderna Vaccine. The efficacy of this vaccine has been found to be up to 95 percent, but even before the vaccine came, it has been caught in controversies.

In fact, Moderna is seeking legal protection in case of any claim during the use of the vaccine in India and the Indian government has denied it.

So far, more than 32 million cases of corona infection have been reported in India, while 35 million cases have been detected in America so far.

During the peak of the second wave in India, about 4 lakh cases were reported daily, but now on an average 30 to 40 thousand cases are coming to the fore. Experts warn that the third wave cannot be avoided.

India ranks third in terms of deaths in the world with more than 4 lakh deaths. America and Brazil are the only countries where more than 4 lakh deaths have occurred.

Vaccination status

The government aims to provide the vaccine to all adult Indians by the end of this year, but challenges such as vaccine shortages, slow speeds and hesitation to vaccinate are also emerging.

So far, 11% of the country’s population has taken both the vaccines since the vaccination started in January. In order to compensate for the time, the government has now shown speed in the production and purchase of the vaccine.

The government has prepared to use the local version of the Novavax vaccine at the local level, which has been prepared by the Serum Institute of India (SII). The company says that the vaccine has been found to be up to 90% effective during clinical trials in the US.

Apart from this, the Government of India has ordered 300 million vaccine doses to the Indian company Biological E.

When will the Novavax vaccine be available?

In September last year, American pharmaceutical company Novavax signed a deal with Serum Institute of India (SII) to manufacture 2 billion vaccine doses.

Adar Poonawalla, CEO, Serum Institute of India, expects the India-ready version of Novavax, ‘Kovovax’, to be available from September.

He said the clinical trial of the vaccine is expected to be completed by November, but the Serum Institute of India may apply for a license before its completion based on global data from the trial.

Two doses of Novavax vaccine are given. During trials in the US, this vaccine has been found to be 91% effective in people who are more severe than the infection and 100% in moderate and less severe cases.

How much do you know about the Biological E Vaccine?

The government has ordered a dose of 30 crore vaccines to Biological E. This company has developed the vaccine in collaboration with American pharmaceutical company Dynavax and Baylor College of Medicine.

India has placed an order of $ 206 million when the vaccine is not yet approved for emergency use.

The government said in its statement that this unnamed vaccine is in the third phase of clinical trials, has been given to thousands of people and has been tested for efficacy and safety, in the initial two phases it has produced ‘promising results’ Huh.

How much do we know about Sputnik V?

This vaccine has been prepared by Gamalya Institute of Moscow. It had landed in controversies only when it started being applied without the final trial data coming to the fore. But scientists say that its benefits are now visible.

India accelerates production of corona virus vaccine amid warnings of third wave

A cold virus has been used in this, which has been made harmless. It transmits a small fraction of the corona virus into the body. After getting the vaccine, the body starts producing antibodies that are specific to the virus.

It can be stored at a temperature of 2 to 8 °C which makes it easy to carry and store. However, unlike other vaccines, Sputnik V has a different dose of 1st and 2nd vaccine which is given after 21 days.

Both target the specific ‘spike’ of the corona virus but use different vectors that neutralize the virus that causes the spike in the body.

The idea is that it is better to use two different formulas than to use one version of the same vaccine twice and that it can provide longer protection.

India received the first consignment of 12.5 crore vaccine doses in May. According to reports, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), marketing this vaccine, has tied up with six domestic vaccine manufacturers to make 750 million vaccine doses. Sputnik V has been permitted in 60 countries, including Argentina, the Palestinian Authority, Venezuela, Hungary, the United Arab Emirates and Iran.

What do we know about Covaccine?

Covaccine is an inactivated vaccine, which means that it is made from a killed corona virus that can be safely passed into the body.

It has been prepared by Bharat Biotech, a 24-year-old vaccine manufacturer. Bharat Biotech has used a special sample of corona virus provided by the National Institute of Virology.

Immune cells recognize the dead virus and cause the immune system to produce antibodies against the pandemic virus.

In this, two doses are given after an interval of four weeks. The vaccine can be stored between 2°C to 8°C.

From the beginning to the third phase data, this vaccine has been found to be 81% effective on the virus.

India’s regulator had approved the emergency use of the vaccine in January itself, while the third phase of the trial was going on. After this the experts raised questions on this.

What was the controversy about Covaccine?

The controversy started when the regulator during the clinical trial phase allowed its ‘limited use in public interest in case of emergency with due diligence’.

Experts then wondered how a vaccine could be approved for emergency use for hundreds of millions of people while its trial was still underway. The All India Drug Action Network said at the time that allowing a ‘completely unstudied vaccine’ was ‘incomprehensible to scientific reasoning.’

The vaccine manufacturer and claims regulator defended the vaccine, saying it is ‘safe and elicits a strong immune response.’

Bharat Biotech had said that the Indian Clinical Trial Act allows for “rapid” approval of the drug after Phase II trials “to meet medical needs during critical and life-threatening diseases in the country”.

The company had promised that it would provide complete data after the third phase of the trial in July.

What is Covishield?

Oxford-AstraZeneca’s vaccine is locally making SII.

This vaccine is made from a weakened version of the common cold virus (adeno virus) of chimpanzees. It has been made like the corona virus although it does not cause disease.

When the vaccine is injected into the patient’s body, it signals the body’s immune system to make the vaccine and fight against the corona virus infection.

This vaccine can be stored at a temperature of 2 °C to 8 °C and is given in two doses at intervals of four to 12 weeks.

How effective is Covishield?

International clinical trials of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine show that it was up to 90% effective when people were given half the dose followed by the next full dose.

However, there are no clear data to support the idea of ​​half-dose and full-dose.

Apart from this, an unpublished data suggests that keeping a long gap between two doses increases its effect significantly. When one group was given the vaccine, it was up to 70% effective after the first dose.

The company that makes this vaccine in India says that Covishield is ‘very effective’ and data from third trials in Brazil and Britain supports this.

Clinical trials are a three-stage process in which the effectiveness of the vaccine is ascertained whether it is ever causing side effects.

How many more vaccines are in line?

There are other vaccines in India whose safety and efficacy are in various stages of trials:

ZyCov-Di is developed by Ahmedabad-based pharmaceutical company Zydus-Cadila.

HGCO19, India’s first mRNA-based vaccine developed by Pune-based Genova in association with Seattle-based HDT Biotech Corporation, uses a genetic code that activates an immune response.

Bharat Biotech’s nasal vaccine trial is also going on.

Which countries are taking India’s vaccine?

India has sent 66 million doses of the vaccine to 95 countries in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and Africa. Britain, Canada, Brazil and Mexico have received this vaccine.

Covishield and Covaccine have been exported. Some of these are given as ‘gifts’ and some as Kovax plans. Under the World Health Organization’s Covax plan, 190 countries are to be given 2 billion vaccine doses within a year.

But in March, India temporarily halted all exports of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine. The government said that during the ever-increasing cases of infection in the country, its demand may increase, so these supplements are needed in India only.