The vaccine, ZyCoV-D, uses a section of genetic material from the virus that gives instructions such as DNA or RNA to make the protein to which the immune system responds.
India’s drug regulator has granted emergency approval for the COVID-19 vaccine for Zydus Cadila, the world’s first coronavirus DNA, in adults and children 12 years of age and older.
The approval gives a boost to India’s vaccination program, which aims to inoculate all eligible adults before December, and will provide the first shot for under-18s as the country is still struggling to contain the virus spread in some states.
The vaccine, ZyCoV-D, uses a section of genetic material from the virus that gives instructions such as DNA or RNA to make the specific protein to which the immune system recognizes and responds.
Unlike most COVID-19 vaccines, which require two doses or even a single dose, ZyCoV-D is given in three doses.
The generic drug manufacturer, listed as Cadila Healthcare Ltd, aims to dose ZyCoV-D from 100 to 120 million a year and has already started storing the vaccine.
The Zydus Cadila vaccine, developed in collaboration with the Department of Biotechnology, is the second shot obtained at home to obtain an emergency permit in India after Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin.
The drug maker said in July that its COVID-19 vaccine was effective against new coronavirus mutants, especially the Delta variant, and that the shot is administered using a needle-free applicator instead of traditional syringes.
The regulatory gesture makes ZyCoV-D the sixth vaccine authorized for use in the country where only up to 9.18 percent of the entire population has been fully vaccinated to date, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Zydus Cadila had also submitted data evaluating a two-dose regimen for the shooting in July and plans to seek regulatory approval for the same.
The company had applied for ZyCoV-D authorization on July 1, based on an efficiency rate of 66.6% in a final-phase trial of more than 28,000 volunteers nationwide.