India could quickly start testing the feasibility of a weight-reduction plan that mixes two completely different Kovid-19 vaccines to see if it helps increase the immune response to the virus.
The take a look at could be performed utilizing each vaccines which are at present obtainable within the nation, and that are within the pipeline, The Indian Express has realized.
According to Dr. NK Arora, Chairman of the Kovid-19 Working Group beneath the National Technical Advisory Group on Vaccination (NTAGI), work is anticipated to start “in a few weeks”.
Dr. Arora mentioned that about eight vaccines could be combined and matched as a part of the method. These embody three vaccines which are at present accredited to be used within the nation, Kovishield of Serum Institute of India, Kovaxin of Bharat Biotech and Russian-made Sputnik V.
Clinical trials as a part of the train could also be performed in collaboration between our bodies such because the Indian Council of Medical Research and firms that develop and produce vaccines. The trials will examine elements akin to whether or not vaccines primarily based on completely different platforms could be given concurrently, and which vaccines could be given within the first and second doses.
“We are looking for a combination of vaccines that provide better protection. At the moment, the vaccines used are providing protection against critical illness, but they are not providing protection from infection and transmission of viruses to the extent that we prefer, ”mentioned Dr. Arora.
“Various factors have to be considered here. Appropriate research studies have to be done in real field conditions … The whole objective is better immune protection for the population without any adverse effects.”
“Both vaccines will be individually safe, but the focus is also on whether they are safe together… These vaccines are manufactured in different platforms and we do not want them to cause difficulty and cause complications, so every vaccine is probably Will not done. It is possible to mix and match, ”he mentioned.
The combination of Kovid-19 vaccines has been mentioned within the Kovid-19 Working Group, NTAGI and the National Expert Group on Kovid-19 Vaccine Administration (NEGVAC), it has been realized.
Dr. Arora mentioned, “These tests can be included in the country’s current vaccination program against Kovid-19.” “The feasibility and value of a mixture of Kovid-19 vaccines has been proposed to be discussed at all levels.”
There are at present six Kovid-19 vaccines within the pipeline – Serum Institute’s Kovovax, Biological E’s Corbevax, Zydus Cadila’s Zykov-D, Genova’s mRNA vaccine, Johnson & Johnson Vaccine’s Bio-E variant, and Bharat Biotech’s Intranasal Kovid-19 Vaccine. The authorities is in talks with Pfizer to convey its mRNA vaccine into the nation this yr.
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With inputs from TheIndianEXPRESS
