India’s 'first' indigenous COVID-19 vaccine COVAXIN, developed by @BharatBiotech with @ICMRDELHI & NIV , approved for human clinical trials from the DCGI. The Phase I + II clinical trials to start next month after pre-clinical studies demonstrated safety & immune response. 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Update: The @BharatBiotech vaccine (called covaxin) was developed & tested in collaboration with University of Wisconsin & vaccine company FluGen. It is delivered intranasally & has completed Phase II trials in the USA. Bharat will manufacture clinical lots of the vaccine. 1/3
* covaxin could be a different one than coroflu (developed with flugen and Uni of Wisconsin)
The new @BharatBiotech vaccine will be based on an influenza virus where gene sequences from SARS-CoV-2 are inserted into M2SR- vaccine platform (M2-ion channel protein Deficient Single Replication). 2/3
Information from a short communications in ‘vaccine’ journal co-authored by @BharatBiotech rep. https://t.co/axdiEF5Pwd Despite ICMR & NIV claiming indigenous development, this June article suggests development and testing in collab with Wisconsin Uni & Flugen researchers. 3/3
sciencedirect.com/science/articl…
I would hold the horses, before reviewing the research collaborations. If others have contributed and tested the vaccine before Indian Pharma & institutes, can it really be labelled indigenous?
Update 2: press release 20th May by @BharatBiotech “Global Leader and vaccine innovator Bharat Biotech and Thomas Jefferson University of Philadelphia have signed an exclusive deal to develop a new vaccine candidate for COVID-19 invented at Jefferson” 1/3
bharatbiotech.com/images/press/B…
