Bharat Biotech's intranasal COVID-19 vaccine to enter phase 1 trials next month

HYDERABAD: Bharat Biotech is expected to initiate Phase-1 trials of its intranasal vaccine for COVID-19 next month, Krishna Ella, Chairman and Managing Directorof the city-base vaccine maker said on Tuesday.

Speaking at a session of the three-day TiE Global Summit (TGS)being held virtually,he said Bharat Biotech is setting up two more facilities for vaccine manufacturing including Covaxin, a vaccine for the coronavirus.

"I think it will enter into phase 1 (next month) because it is going to be a single-dose vaccine. The clinical trial process is also going to be faster," he said in an interactive session with Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Chairperson of Bengaluru-based Biocon Limited.

Ella said as the upcoming vaccines for COVID-19 require two-dose intramuscular injections, a country like India needs 2.6 billion syringes and needles which may add up to pollution.

According to him, keeping several issues in mind Bharat Biotech tied up withWashingtonUniversitySchool of Medicine in St.Louis for a novel "chimp-adenovirus" (Chimpanzee adenovirus), single-dose intranasal vaccine for COVID-19.

While the Phase I trials will take place in Saint LouisUniversity's Vaccine and Treatment Evaluation Unit, Bharat Biotech, upon obtaining the required regulatory approval, will pursue further stages of clinical trials in India and undertake large scale manufacture of the vaccine at its GMP facility located in Genome Valley, here, BB had earlier said.

Replying to a query on the probable pricing of Covaxin, he said Indian vaccines will be much cheaper when compared to other countries.