COVID-19 vaccine: India's very own Covaxin draws global attention, says ICMR

Amid the uncertainty around coronavirus vaccines, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has claimed that its indigenous vaccine candidate Covaxin has received global attention. "The indigenous vaccine against COVID-19 Covaxin - a product of ICMR-Bharat Biotech collaboration-achieves remarkable feat," the central agency tweeted.

The tweet added that data collated from India shows an "impressive safety and immuno-genicity profile of Covaxin and sparks Lancet's interest in publishing them."

It also stated that promising results in the phase 1 and phase 2 trials of the Bharat Biotech COVID-19 vaccine have led to the phase 3 trials, which are currently underway with 26,000 participants across 22 sites in India.

Covaxin showed long-term antibody and T-cell (immune) memory responses three months after the vaccination in phase 1 trials and tolerable safety responses in phase 2 trials. Bharat Biotech also mentioned the antibodies might remain for 6-12 months, PTI reported.

All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), in an advert, also said that AIIMS- New Delhi is a site for Covaxin Phase 3 clinical trial. "This is a whole-virion inactivated vaccine co-sponsored by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and Bharat Biotech."

The advert adds that those who wish to participate in the COVID-19 vaccine phase 3 trials can send a WhatsApp message at +91-7428847499 or by dropping a mail at ctaiims.covid19@gmail.com.

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