Indian Vaccine Trial starts at 8 Places! Do Patients have Side-Effects? Details

The human trial of India’s first indigenous coronavirus vaccine candidate Covaxin has started in Uttar Pradesh today. It was conducted in Uttar Pradesh’s Rana Hospital and Trauma Centre which is one of the 12 institutes selected by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) for conducting the clinical trials of Covaxin. 

According to Venketesh Chaturvedi, Chief Administrative officer, around 9 volunteers have participated in today’s trial. "The trials began under the supervision of physician Dr Ajit Pratap Singh and gynecologist and obstetrician Dr Sona Ghosh," Chaturvedi said. Those who took vaccine today were under strict observation. "All of them are absolutely fine," he told news agency PTI.

On Monday, the clinical trial for the vaccine commenced at the Institute of Medical Sciences and SUM Hospital in Bhubaneswar. Several people took volunteered, out of which selected volunteers were administered to receive two doses within a gap of 14 days. "There was a lot of enthusiasm among people who offered themselves to be volunteers for the trial," he added.

The first phase of human trial of the indigenous Indian vaccine candidate was completed at PGIMS Rohtak.  "50 people across India were administered the vaccine and the results were encouraging," Dr Savita Verma, principal investigator of the vaccine trial team, told news agency ANI.

“Volunteers between the ages of 18 and 55 with no co-morbidity conditions will participate in the first phase of trial. There are three formulations of the COVID-19 vaccine candidate. Each subject will be given any one of the formulation in two doses two weeks apart. The first 50 will get the lowest strength dose of the vaccine. If it is found to be safe in them, then it will be given to another 50 patients in high doses,” Livemint quoted Dr Sanjay Rai, professor at the centre for community medicine at AIIMS.

Almost 375 people will be taking part in the first phases of clinical human trial of the Indian vaccine. More than 3,500 people have enrolled themselves for participating in the trial.

Covaxin was developed by Bharat Biotech International Limited in partnership with Indian Council of Medical Research and National Institute of Virology. Apart from Uttar Pradesh, vaccine trials are underway in Hyderabad, Rohtak, Patna, Kancheepuram, Delhi, Goa and Bhubaneswar.