Russia will jointly produce Sputnik V vaccine for COVID-19 with India: Russian envoy Nikolay Kudashev

The vaccine was developed by the Gamaleya Research Institute while the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), Russia's sovereign wealth fund, is investing in the production and promotion of the vaccine abroad.

PTI

December 21, 2020 / 09:22 PM IST

(Image: Reuters)

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Russian envoy to India Nikolay Kudashev on December 21 said Moscow will jointly produce the Sputnik V vaccine for COVID-19 along with New Delhi and it will be manufactured by Indian pharma major Dr Reddy's Laboratories. "We are working very hard to fight COVID-19 together with India, and are now advancing to jointly produce Sputnik V vaccine at the capacities of Dr Reddy's Laboratories to be used in India, Russia and other countries," Kudashev said, addressing a press conference.

"We have supported each other in a big way earlier this year when we managed to repatriate thousands of Russian and Indian nationals to their respective home countries," he added. On August 11, Russia became the world's first country to register a coronavirus vaccine, dubbed Sputnik V.

The vaccine was developed by the Gamaleya Research Institute while the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), Russia's sovereign wealth fund, is investing in the production and promotion of the vaccine abroad. Sputnik V vaccine has shown 92 per cent efficacy in preventing COVID-19, according to the interim trial results announced by the country's health ministry.

In September 2020, Dr Reddys and RDIF entered into a partnership to conduct clinical trials of Sputnik V vaccine and its distribution in India. As part of the partnership, RDIF shall supply 100 million doses of the vaccine to Dr Reddy's upon regulatory approval in India.

Kudashev said a lot of efforts are aimed at coordination in the international arena, including the World Health Organization and BRICS, where Russia has got advanced healthcare mechanisms and initiatives, including Tuberculosis Network, Vaccine Research Center, and Early Warning System to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Frequently Asked Questions

How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.

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