India’s first DNA vaccine ZyCoV-D released for use by CDL-Kausauli
The three doses of the ZyCoV-D vaccine will be administered on day 0, day 28 and day 56. Each of the three doses will be given in two shots on each arm, right and left; for an individual to be fully vaccinated by ZyCoV-D, one would have to be injected with six shots of the vaccine.
FollowIndia’s first DNA vaccine ZyCoV-D doses have been released for use after being tested by the Central Drug Laboratory (CDL) in Kasauli. Seven batches comprising 2,37,530 doses have been released by CDL which is the national control lab for immunobiologicals in India. In addition to that, 466 batches of Covaxin, 549 of Covishield, seven of Janssen and 24 batches of Sputnik V have also been released, Dr Arun Bhardwaj, director, CDL, Kasauli, was quoted by CNN-News18.
India’s first DNA vaccine ZyCoV-D to fight Covid, manufactured by Cadila Healthcare is the first plasmid vaccine in the world for human use. Parents have been eagerly waiting for Zydus Cadila’s Covid vaccine for children. The ZyCov-D vaccine, to be administered intradermally using a PharmaJet needle free applicator, will ensure painless vaccine delivery. It is also the first vaccine to be approved for use in children in the 12-17 age group in India.
“The ZyCov-D vaccine can be used on children up to 12 years of age and once its use is kick-started, another part of the population can be covered. The government will take a decision as to when to put the vaccine to use depending upon its availability in sufficient quantity,” Dr Bhardwaj was quoted by CNN-News18.
“The CDL is the first vaccine testing lab accredited to the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories. It has a capacity of pre-release certification of nearly 7,000 batches every year. This capacity is likely to increase up to 8,000 batches this year, given the large-scale testing of various Covid vaccines,” he added.
The three doses of the ZyCoV-D vaccine will be administered on day 0, day 28 and day 56. Each of the three doses will be given in two shots on each arm, right and left; for an individual to be fully vaccinated by ZyCoV-D, one would have to be injected with six shots of the vaccine.
Unlike the traditional vaccines, such as Covishield and Covaxin, that are administered using syringes and dosage of 0.5 ml in size, ZyCoV-D comes in a needle-free system. A disposable painless jet applicator is used to administer the dose. The three-dose vaccine will cost Rs 1,128 to the government.
