As covid cases surge in China, India is poised to handle the situation with 90 per cent adults protected by two doses of the vaccine, but the coverage of the third booster shot is still low at 28 per cent. The government has advised people to mask up in public spaces among other precautions such as social distancing, but an additional dose can significantly blunt the effect of covid. Amidst these developments, India’s Serum Institute, which accelerated vaccination in India with Covishield, has asked the country’s drug regulator to approve its Covovax vaccine.
Collaboration with US-based firm
The firm which had also joined forces with AstraZeneca to fight the pandemic, has pitched Covovax as a booster for those who have received two doses of Covishield as well as Covaxin in India. It had submitted an application to the Drugs Controller General of India for the recombinant nanoparticle vaccine in October. Covovax has been manufactured by Serum after a technology transfer from US-based Novavax.
How does it work?
Recombinant nanoparticle vaccines imitate nature to empower the immune system so that it can identify the protein to be targeted. The vaccines such as Covovax and Novavax achieve this by organising recombinant proteins into nanoparticles.
The DCGI has already approved Covovax for children aged between seven and 11 years. As China’s covid wave raises concerns, the National Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (NTAGI) chief has said that hybrid immunity can reduce the impact on India.
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