WORKS AGAINST UK VARIANT, SAYS BHARAT BIO
▶ Interim analysis of phase 3 trial a boost for indigenous vax
Covaxin has shown an interim efficacy of 81 per cent in its phase
3 clinical trial, Bharat Biotech said on Wednesday, a big boost for the indigenous Covid vaccine which is already in use. Covaxin, which is stable at 2-8 degrees Celsius, has also shown efficacy against the UK strain of the virus. The Astrazeneca-oxford vaccine has shown a 62 per cent efficacy with two full doses, and 90 per cent efficacy in one half and one full dose regimen. Russian vaccine Sputnik V has a 91.6 per cent efficacy in interim analysis data from 19,866 volunteers.
Covaxin has shown an interim efficacy of 81 per cent in its phase 3 clinical trial, Bharat Biotech said on Wednesday, a big boost for the indigenous Covid-19 vaccine which is already in use. Covaxin, stable at 2-8 degrees Celsius, has also shown efficacy against the UK strain.
The Astrazeneca-oxford vaccine has shown a 62 per cent efficacy with two full doses, and 90 per cent efficacy in one half and one full dose regimen. Russian vaccine Sputnik V has a 91.6 per cent efficacy in interim analysis data from 19,866 volunteers.
Covaxin, co-developed by ICMR and Bharat Biotech, had been approved by the drug regulator in clinical trial mode in January. The phase 3 studies over 25,800 subjects were underway at the time.
The approval had created a public furor and some doubt among the medical community. The government machinery had to spring into action, with
the director general of ICMR saying data generated in phase two serves as a surrogate for efficacy. The ICMR said in a statement on Wednesday: “The bench-to-bedside journey of the completely indigenous vaccine in less than eight months’ time showcases the immense strength of Atmanirbhar Bharat to fight the odds and stand tall in the global public health community. It is also a testament to India’s emergence as a global vaccine superpower.”
Meanwhile, Bharat Biotech
is gearing up to produce 40 million doses a month.
Interim efficacy
The candidate has shown efficacy of 80.6 per cent in a phase 3 covering participants between 18-98 years of age. This included 2,433 people over the age of 60 and 4,500 people with comorbidities. Bharat Biotech CMD Krishna Ella has earlier said they can re-engineer their product in 15 days for other mutant strains once they have the isolated strain.