Bharat Biotech And Serum Institute To Soon Begin Late-Stage Clinical Trials Of Intranasal COVID-19 Vaccines

In a positive development, the Pune based Serum Institute of India (SII) and Hyderabad based Bharat Biotech are expected to begin the last stage clinical trials of intranasal COVID-19 vaccines in the coming months, reports Economic Times.

Intranasal vaccination trials gain significance as the possible vaccines which are presently undergoing trials are all administered by injection as per the World Health Organisation (WHO).

The development was shared by Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan, who also shared that the late-stage trials can involve as many as 30,000-40,000 participants.

Meanwhile, the Government has also given its go-ahead for the late-stage clinical trials of the Russian Sputnik-V COVID-19 vaccine to be conducted in India. The vaccine has been developed by the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and its trials will be conducted in India by pharmaceutical sector behemoth Dr Reddy's Laboratories Limited.

The development of multiple vaccines and trials of the same is advancing at a rapid pace across the world.