- By Talibuddin Khan
- Tue, 15 Feb 2022 01:30 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
New Delhi | Jagran News Desk: In another shot in the arm in India's vaccination drive against COVID-19, the Subject Expert Committee (SEC) of the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has recommended Emergency Use Authorization to Hyderabad-based pharmaceutical company Biological E's COVID-19 vaccine, Corbevax, for the age group 12 to 18 years subject to certain conditions. It is expected that the DCGI will soon grant the final approval to Corbevax.
The Drugs Controller General Of India (DCGI) has already approved Corbevax, which is India's first indigenously developed RBD protein sub-unit vaccine against COVID-19, for restricted use in an emergency situation in adults on December 28. However, it has not been included in the country's vaccination drive. The central government has also placed an order for five crore doses of the Corbevax. Earlier, the government had placed an order for 30 crore Corbevax doses on August 21 last year.
All you need to know about Corbevax COVID-19 Vaccine:
Corbevax, the two-dose vaccine, will be the second vaccine after Covaxin which has received EUA for those below 18 years of age. The Hyderabad-based pharmaceutical company will be submitting data soon for clinical trials done on children aged below 12 years. The SEC has recommended the EUA only after reviewing the safety and immunogenicity data of the clinical study of Corbevax in children and adolescents. The expected cost of the vaccine is Rs 145 excluding taxes.
The Corbevax vaccine is administered through an intramuscular route with two doses scheduled 28 days apart and is stored at 2 to 8 degrees Celsius and presented as 0.5 ml (single dose) and 5 ml (10 doses) vial pack. According to the Health Ministry, the company has conducted phase 1/2, 2/3 clinical trials of its COVID-19 vaccine in the country. Further, it has conducted a phase 3 active comparator clinical trial to evaluate superiority against the Covishield vaccine, it said.
How does Corbevax work?
Corbevax is a protein subunit vaccine. The jab injects the spike protein that teaches the body to develop antibodies against the novel coronavirus. While the spike protein injected is without the virus, the body uses the antibodies generated to fight the real virus when it looks to infect the person.
How many doses are needed and what will be the dose gap?
Corbevax is a two-dose vaccine and the WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation (SAGE) has recommended a gap of three to four weeks between two doses of Corbevax COVID-19 vaccines.
What is the expected price for Corbevax?
The Hyderabad-based company is expected to deliver the doses this month. The expected cost of the vaccine is Rs 145 excluding taxes, official sources said as quoted by ANI.