Covid: ‘Precautionary’ shot may very well be of a special vaccine

Utilizing the label “precautionary,” retains this window open: that the subsequent shot may very well be a brand new vaccine fairly than only a third shot.

As on Saturday, 12.04 crore over the age of 60 have acquired their first dose of vaccine; and 9.21 crore are totally vaccinated. The official knowledge additionally reveals that 1.03 crore healthcare staff have acquired their first dose, and 96 lakh are totally vaccinated; 1.83 crore frontline staff have acquired their first dose, and 1.68 crore are totally vaccinated. Which successfully implies that greater than 11 crore beneficiaries might be eligible for the “precautionary dose”.

“There may be some readability that if an extra dose is given to a beneficiary, it can’t be, not less than in case of inactive complete virus or adenovirus vector Covid-19 vaccine, the identical vaccine. So the preliminary consensus is {that a} beneficiary can’t take three doses of Covishield or Covaxin,” sources stated.

Sources stated it is extremely seemingly that the precautionary dose might be a vaccine of a special platform. A number of choices are prone to obtainable within the coming months. First up is the Hyderabad-based Organic E’s Corbevax, a protein sub-unit Covid-19 vaccine.

This differs from the inactivated whole-cell vaccines, by containing solely the antigenic components of the virus, to set off a protecting immune response. Bio E’s vaccine candidate contains an antigen developed by Texas Kids’s Hospital Centre for Vaccine Growth and is licensed from BCM Ventures, Baylor School of Medication’s built-in commercialization workforce.

The Centre has already made an advance cost of Rs 1,500 crore to order 30 crore doses of Corbevax. Sources stated that Corbevax is predicted to get Emergency Use Authorisation within the subsequent two weeks.

The second candidate for a possible third dose, may very well be Serum Institute of India’s Covovax. This can be a recombinant nanoparticle protein-based Covid-19 vaccine. The US-based Novavax and SII have already acquired EUA for this vaccine within the Philippines.

The third candidate for a possible third dose, may very well be Bharat Biotech’s intranasal vaccine. Sources stated that this vaccine is predicted to come back within the second half of January.

The fourth candidate for a possible third dose may very well be India’s first m-RNA Covid-19 vaccine developed by Pune-based Gennova Biopharmaceuticals Ltd.

Earlier, the federal government, had stated that Gennova’s mRNA vaccines are anticipated to provide 6 crore doses. Extra considerably, in contrast to Pfizer and Moderna’s mRNA vaccine, this may be saved at India’s immunisation drive’s chilly storage necessities (2-8 levels Celsius).

Consultants throughout the globe are recommending mRNA vaccines as booster doses. In September, after reviewing knowledge on booster responses from completely different combos of COVID-19 vaccines, the UK skilled physique, was the primary to advise a choice for Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine to be supplied because the third booster dose regardless of which product was used within the main schedule.