After receiving regulatory approval, Bharat Biotech has announced that the company has commenced phase-3 clinical trials to test its intranasal Covid vaccine as a booster dose on people who received both the two doses of Covaxin. To compare the immunogenicity and safety of the intranasal vaccine candidate with Covaxin, the drug regulator also allowed the pharmaceutical company to conduct phase-3 clinical trial.
The company is conducting the trials in AIIMS Delhi, Patna and 9 other places. Once the nasal vaccine gets final approval, it will be administered immediately to speed up the vaccination, as the nasal vaccines are inexpensive, easy to inflict and do not require the assistance of healthcare workers.
On Thursday, the Drugs Controller General of India has also given his nod to the company Bharat Biotech, which was originated in Hyderabad to conduct phase-3 multi-centric clinical trials randomly with the intranasal vaccine candidate as a booster shot to those who have administered with two doses of Covid vaccines.
Currently, over 23 crore doses of Covaxin have been administered, accounting for 14% of the total nearly 165 crore doses given across the country.