It has requested the central government to include its intranasal vaccine in the portal for the recipients to get vaccination certificates.
Published Dec 11, 2022 | 2:24 PM ⚊ Updated Dec 11, 2022 | 2:24 PM
Bharat biotech wants its intranasal vaccine to be added in CoWIN portal. Representational Image. (Creative Commons)
Bharat Biotech has requested the central government to include its intranasal Covid 19 vaccine iNCOVACC, in the CoWIN portal to enable the recipients of the jab to get vaccination certificates.
Company sources said Bharat Biotech is currently holding discussions with international “potential partners” who have approached it for manufacturing and distribution of the intranasal vaccine globally.
“Since iNCOVACC has been approved for ‘Restricted Use in Emergency Situations’ and vaccine recipients will require vaccine certificates, we have requested the government to include iNCOVACC in the CoWIN portal. Once this is enabled, India will be one of the few countries to have introduced an intranasal vaccine in its immunisation programme against Covid,” the sources told PTI.
Currently, Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin, Serum Institute’s Covishield and Covovax, Russian Sputnik V and Biological E Ltd’s Corbevax are listed in the CoWIN portal.
The vaccine maker on 6 September announced that its iNCOVACC (BBV154), the world’s first intranasal Covid-19 vaccine, has received approval from the Drugs Controller General of India under Restricted Use in Emergency Situations for ages 18 and above.
“There have been no requests for procurement from state or central governments,” the sources further said.
The Hyderabad-based vaccine maker also plans to export iNCOVACC to other countries once it gets approvals from the respective nations, sources added.
iNCOVACC (BBV154) has also received approval from the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) under restricted use in emergency situations for ages 18 and above in India, for heterologous booster doses.
The vaccine was developed in partnership with Washington University, St Louis, which had designed and developed the recombinant adenoviral vectored construct and evaluated it in pre-clinical studies for efficacy.
The vaccine candidate underwent Phases I, II and III clinical trials with successful results and has been specifically formulated to allow intranasal delivery through nasal drops.
Phase-III trials were conducted for safety, and immunogenicity in approximately 3,100 subjects, at 14 trial sites across India.
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