Bharat Biotech’s COVID-19 vaccine candidate COVAXIN has shown positive signs in their animal trials. The animal trials have also generated robust immune responses. This announcement was made by the Hyderabad based company on September 12.
The indigenous vaccine is one of the front runners in the race for the Coronavirus vaccine in India.
Bharat Biotech and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) have been jointly developing the COVAXIN vaccine. Till now testing has been done at 12 institutes across India.
According to the firm statement, the trial results demonstrate a positive effect in a live viral challenge model. In the trial, a two-dose vaccination regimen of inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidates was administrated in 20 Rhesus Macaques. They were divided into four groups.
One group was administered with placebo. The other three groups were immunized with three different vaccine candidates at zero and 14 days. All the macaques were exposed to the viral challenge 14 days after the second dose.
The results have shown protective efficacy, increasing SARS-CoV-2 specific IgG, and neutralizing antibodies. There was also a reduction in the replication of the virus in the nasal cavity, throat, and lung tissues of the monkeys.
No evidence of pneumonia was observed by histopathological examination in vaccinated groups, unlike the placebo groups. No adverse events were seen in animals who were immunized with a two-dose vaccination regimen.
Meanwhile, in the last 24 hours, there was a record jump of 1,201 deaths due to COVID-19. Also, there was a spike of 97,570 new COVID-19 cases. The total death toll has also reached 77,472.
