The research work for the development of vaccines for children over the age of 12 to 18 years was going on for a long time. In India, Zydus Cadila’s ZyCoV-D and Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin were the only two vaccine candidates in the race of being tested among children. They are also the only vaccines to be developed indigenously.
Now, with approval from the center, Zydus Cadila’s vaccine, ZyCoV-D, will be used in an emergency in India. It will be administered to people 12 years and above. The department of biotechnology (DBT) said, “Zydus Cadila has received approval for Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA) from the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) for ZyCoV-D today i.e. 20/08/2021, the world’s first and India’s indigenously developed DNA-based vaccine for COVID-19 to be administered in humans including children and adults 12 years and above.”
With the addition of ZyCoV-D, India has now six approved vaccines for use. Two of them, one from AstraZeneca Plc (Covishield) and one from Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech International Ltd are being used in the government’s vaccination drive across the country. Russia’s Sputnik V has been administered in small numbers only while Johnson & Johnson and Moderna Inc are still negotiating for legal security.
About ZyCoV-D
ZyCoV-D is a three-dose, indigenously developed DNA-based vaccine. It is the only needle-free Covid vaccine in the world. This vaccine instructs the cells to produce spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 virus when injected into an individual. This elicits an immune response that plays a vital role in protection from the disease as well as viral clearance.
The second dose of the vaccine will be administered on day 28th followed by a third dose on the 56th day. The vaccine has been developed in partnership with the department under Mission COVID Suraksha. It has been implemented by the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council which has said that the “plug-and-play” technology on which the plasmid DNA platform is based can be easily adapted to deal with mutations in the virus, such as those already occurring.
ZyCoV-D has been supported by the Covid-19 Research Consortia through National Biopharma Mission for preclinical studies, Phase I and Phase II clinical trials, and by the Mission COVID Suraksha for Phase III Clinical Trial.
As per the claims of Zydus Cadila, ZyCoV-D works against newer virus strains, including the highly infectious Delta variant. The vaccine will be delivered via a “painless” intradermal applicator. The company is also planning to seek approval for a two-dose regimen of the vaccine.
Zyydus Cadila MD Dr. Sharvil Patel has revealed that the company will next apply for Covid-19 vaccine trials in children of age group 3-12.
The vaccine roll-out is likely to start by mid or end of September. But in larger quantities, it will begin in the middle of October. The company will roll out around 5 crore doses by the end of this year. In all the trials, no severe side effects related to the vaccine have been observed. It has an efficacy of 66 percent.
