Covid-19 vaccine iNCOVACC
Bharat Biotech is all set to launch its intranasal vaccine this month. According to Krishna Ella, CMD of Bharat Biotech, the vaccine will be launched on Republic Day i.e. January 26.
The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has already given its approval for the nasal vaccine. iNCOVACC is first of its kind vaccine for COVID-19 in India.
“Bharat Biotech will launch its nasal vaccine in India on Republic Day i.e. January 26,” Ella said. He said that during the 8th edition of the India International Science Festival (IISF). He was participating in a session of the event that is being held at the Maulana Azad National Institute of Technology (MANIT).
The session in which Ella was speaking was titled ‘Face-to-Face with New Frontiers in Science’.
The company has already announced the price of its nasal vaccine. According to Bharat Biotech, the vaccine will cost Rs 325 per shot for procurement by the government and Rs 800 per shot for private vaccination centres.
There is a lot of buzz around iNCOVACC as Bharat Biotech, an Indian multinational biotechnology company headquartered in the city of Hyderabad, has said that the vaccine will create an immune response in the nose, the point of entry for the coronavirus.
As per the company, the nasal route has excellent potential for vaccination due to the organised immune system of the nasal mucosa.
Bharat Biotech has stated that the intranasal vaccine can be taken after six months of the second dose.
As a needleless vaccination, iNCOVACC can be really helpful in mass immunization to protect against the coronavirus amid concerns of new emerging variants of concern. Experts also believe that apart from protecting against COVID-19, this vaccine will also help fight respiratory viruses and infections.
The vaccine has been developed in partnership with Washington University, St. Louis. The nasal vaccine has given good results in all three phases during evaluations.
