5 India Sites Ready for Final Phase of Oxford COVID Vaccine Trials

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(Photo: The Quint)

Five sites across the country have been identified for the third and final phase of human trials of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, Renu Swarup, Secretary of Department of Biotechnology (DBT) said on Monday, 27 July.

The Serum Institute of India, the largest vaccine-maker in the world, has been chosen by Oxford and its partner AstraZeneca to manufacture the vaccine once it is ready.

Swarup told PTI that it is important to have adequate data before the vaccine is administered to Indians.

Trial results for the first two phases were published earlier this month. In the third phase, the vaccine will be administered to thousands of people, said the media report.

The Pune-based SII has also sought permission from the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) for conducting Phase 2 and 3 of human clinical trials of the potential vaccine.

The manufacturing will start even before the final approval so that adequate volumes of the vaccine is ready, PTI reported.

The five sites are at INCLEN Trust International in Palwal, Haryana; KEM in Pune; the Society for Health Allied Research in Hyderabad; the National Institute of Epidemiology in Chennai; and Christian Medical College in Vellore, Tamil Nadu.

On 20 July, scientists announced that the coronavirus vaccine developed by Oxford University has shown good immune response and may be safe for human use.

On 27 July, a massive 47,704 people tested positive for coronavirus in India, taking the total tally to almost 15 lakhs. There are 4,96,988 active cases as of today, 9,52,723 persons have been discharged and 33,425 deaths recorded so far.