First batch of Russia covid vaccine in 2 weeks, mass production starts: Report
Russia on Tuesday became become the first country to grant regulatory approval to a coronavirus vaccine. The vaccine has been named “Sputnik V” in homage to the world’s first satellite launched by the Soviet Union. Russia’s decision to grant approval to the covid vaccine even before final trial has raised concerns among some experts.
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President Vladimir Putin and other officials have said it is completely safe. The president said one of his daughters had taken it as a volunteer and felt good afterwards. “I know that it works quite effectively, forms strong immunity, and I repeat, it has passed all the necessary checks,” Putin told a government meeting.
The vaccine is administered in two doses and consists of two serotypes of a human adenovirus, each carrying an S-antigen of the new coronavirus, which enter human cells and produce an immune response.
Russia has said it already received foreign requests for 1 billion doses.
Clinical trials of the Russian vaccine is expected to start soon in the UAE and the Philippines.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has said he is willing to participate personally in the trial.
Some international experts have also questioned the speed at which Russia approved its vaccine.
German Health Minister Jens Spahn today said Russia’s COVID-19 vaccine had not been sufficiently tested, adding the aim was to have a safe product rather than just being first to start vaccinating people.
More than 100 possible COVID-19 vaccines are being developed around the world. At least four are in final Phase III human trials, according to WHO data.
