India is the first country in the world toapprove the emergency use of the
nasal vaccine. Bharat Biotech’s nasal vaccine, INCOVACC, against Covid-19
will be availablefor ₹800 per doseat private vaccination centres and ₹325
at government venues, exclusive of taxes, the companyannounced. The company
added the product is meant to be easy to administer inlow and middle-income
countries.The vaccineis scheduled to be rolled out in the fourth week of January as a
booster shotoption for eligible adults, irrespective of what their primary
coronavirusvaccination dose was. It will be administered to people twice,
28 days apart. “INCOVACC is now available (as an option)on Co-WIN, and
priced at INR 800+GST for private markets and priced at INR325+GST for
supplies to Govt of India and State Governments,” the company saidin a
statement, referring to the government-run vaccine booking
service,Co-WIN.The nasal vaccine was approved by the Central Drugs
StandardControl Organization (CDSCO) earlier this month.India’s technical expert committee on immunization– National Technical
Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI) – recommended it beincluded as one
of the “precautionary dose” adults can take as boosters.The vaccineis based
on a new platform than Bharat Biotech’s other dose, Covaxin. While itwas
evaluated in phases I, II and III clinical trials with successful
results,the statement said, the company is yet to release any data around
it. The lackof transparency harks back to the early days of the Covaxin
rollout, when manyhesitated to take it since there was little scientific
evidence shared.Butnasal vaccines are deemed to be promising for protection
against theSars-CoV-2.Such doses target the mucous membrane in the nasal pathway, thesite where
the coronavirus first infects the body. The vaccine elicits aprotective
coat of what is known as IgA antibodies over the membrane, whichthen
prevents an infection in the first place.“Thevectored intranasal delivery
platform gives us the capability for rapid productdevelopment, scale-up,
easy and painless immunisation during public healthemergencies and
pandemics. We thank the Ministry of Health, CDSCO, Dept ofBiotechnology,
Govt of India, Technology Development Board, and WashingtonUniversity, St
Louis, for their support and guidance,” executive chairmanKrishna Ella said
in a statement.Thecompany said the vaccine is stable at 2-8°C for easy
storage and distribution.Clinicaltrials were conducted at nine sites across
the country in 875 participants. Thevaccine was developed in partnership
with Washington University, St. Louis,which had designed and developed the
recombinant adenoviral vectored constructand evaluated in preclinical
studies for efficacy, it said.
nasal vaccine. Bharat Biotech’s nasal vaccine, INCOVACC, against Covid-19
will be availablefor ₹800 per doseat private vaccination centres and ₹325
at government venues, exclusive of taxes, the companyannounced. The company
added the product is meant to be easy to administer inlow and middle-income
countries.The vaccineis scheduled to be rolled out in the fourth week of January as a
booster shotoption for eligible adults, irrespective of what their primary
coronavirusvaccination dose was. It will be administered to people twice,
28 days apart. “INCOVACC is now available (as an option)on Co-WIN, and
priced at INR 800+GST for private markets and priced at INR325+GST for
supplies to Govt of India and State Governments,” the company saidin a
statement, referring to the government-run vaccine booking
service,Co-WIN.The nasal vaccine was approved by the Central Drugs
StandardControl Organization (CDSCO) earlier this month.India’s technical expert committee on immunization– National Technical
Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI) – recommended it beincluded as one
of the “precautionary dose” adults can take as boosters.The vaccineis based
on a new platform than Bharat Biotech’s other dose, Covaxin. While itwas
evaluated in phases I, II and III clinical trials with successful
results,the statement said, the company is yet to release any data around
it. The lackof transparency harks back to the early days of the Covaxin
rollout, when manyhesitated to take it since there was little scientific
evidence shared.Butnasal vaccines are deemed to be promising for protection
against theSars-CoV-2.Such doses target the mucous membrane in the nasal pathway, thesite where
the coronavirus first infects the body. The vaccine elicits aprotective
coat of what is known as IgA antibodies over the membrane, whichthen
prevents an infection in the first place.“Thevectored intranasal delivery
platform gives us the capability for rapid productdevelopment, scale-up,
easy and painless immunisation during public healthemergencies and
pandemics. We thank the Ministry of Health, CDSCO, Dept ofBiotechnology,
Govt of India, Technology Development Board, and WashingtonUniversity, St
Louis, for their support and guidance,” executive chairmanKrishna Ella said
in a statement.Thecompany said the vaccine is stable at 2-8°C for easy
storage and distribution.Clinicaltrials were conducted at nine sites across
the country in 875 participants. Thevaccine was developed in partnership
with Washington University, St. Louis,which had designed and developed the
recombinant adenoviral vectored constructand evaluated in preclinical
studies for efficacy, it said.
