Zydus wants to prescribe the first vaccine for plasmid DNA Covid

 

Home health care and prescription drug Zydus Cadila has applied for an emergency use authorization (EUA) to the office of Drug Controller General of India's ZyCoV-D, its plasmid DNA vaccine against Covid-19.

"As the first plasmid DNA vaccine for human use, ZyCoV-D has proven its effectiveness in our fight against Covid-19. The vaccine, if approved, will not only benefit adults but also young people in the 12-to-18-age age group," he said. Dr Sharvil Patel, MD, Cadila Healthcare Ltd, a leading Zydus Cadila Group based in Ahmedabad.

ZyCoV-D is a plasmid DNA vaccine that when injected produces the SARS-CoV-2 virus spike protein and stimulates the immune response controlled by the cellular armor and the human immune system, which plays a key role in protecting from infection and removal of the virus. 

ZyCoV-D has also been tested in adolescents between the ages of 12 and 18 in India. About a thousand studies in this age group were registered and the vaccine was found to be safe and well tolerated. The tolerance profile was similar to that seen in adults.

Zydus is currently setting up a new facility to manufacture its own Covid-19 vaccine. "Once the facility is completed by the end of this month, it can produce a single dose of vaccines," added Patel, who declined to give a specific timeline for the introduction of the vaccine but said it could be done within 45-60 days as long as it was approved.

Zydus Cadila is currently investing up to $ 500 million in the development of the vaccine, including the cost of establishing a new production facility.

According to Zydus, the plug-and-play technology on which the plasmid DNA platform is based is ready to deal with Covid-19 as it can be easily modified to deal with viral mutations.

The company also tested two types of ZyCoV-D drugs using a dose of 3mg per visit. The effects of immunogenicity have been found to be equal to the current three-drug regimen.

"This will also help to reduce the full duration of the vaccine while maintaining the high safety of the vaccine in the future," said Patel.

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