The Sputnik Light Covid-19 vaccine will be launched in India by December, Kirill Dmitriev, CEO, of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) was quoted as saying by ANI. The one-shot Sputnik Light vaccine is in the midst of clinical trials. In India, the Hyderabad-based Dr Reddy’s Laboratories is the sole distributor of Sputnik V under an agreement with the RDIF.
While the two-dose Sputnik V is made from two components — recombinant adenovirus vector 26 (also known as Ad26 or a prime dose) and adenovirus vector 5, Sputnik light is primarily the first shot (Ad26) of the already approved Sputnik V.
The RDIF had earlier said the vaccine’s one-shot regimen makes it a strong solution for countries with low vaccination rates. Sputnik Light can also be successfully used to maintain existing herd immunity as a booster shot.
Last month, the RDIF had said that Sputnik Light demonstrates 70 per cent efficacy against infection with the Delta variant of coronavirus during the first three months after being vaccinated. The analysis was conducted based on data from 28,000 participants who had received a single dose of Sputnik Light, compared with a control group of 5.6 million individuals who were not vaccinated. The data used in the study was collected in July 2021 in Moscow, it added.
“The vaccine is more than 75 per cent effective among subjects under the age of 60. Sputnik Light also provides much higher efficacy against severe disease and hospitalisations," RDIF had said in a statement.
Dmitriev had also said, “The efficacy results of the one-shot Sputnik Light vaccine against the Delta variant of coronavirus significantly outperform those of a number of two-shot vaccines." Sputnik Light is safe and highly effective when used both on a standalone basis and when combined with other vaccines, he added.
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