Russia has reached deal with world’s largest vaccine maker

The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) said on Tuesday it had reached an agreement with the Serum Institute of India (SII), the largest vaccine manufacturer – in number of doses – in the world, to produce, since September, the vaccine against the coronavirus Sputnik V.

According to information provided at a press conference this morning, the intention of the parties is to produce 300 million doses of Sputnik per year.

As part of the technology transfer initiated to release the first test batches in September, the developers of the Russian vaccine have sent samples of the drug’s components to the Serum Institute.

However, at the end of this note Bugle he had not been able to clarify whether Russia’s intention is to produce both components with this manufacturer or only the first (based on adenovirus 26), given the tendency to try a combination of brands in vaccination schedules, given the difficulty of producing the second Sputnik dose (based on an adenovirus 5 vector).

From RDIF, they have made it clear that the novelty means an escalation in the series of deals they have already made with Indian pharmaceutical companies, which include companies such as Gland Pharma, Hetero Biopharma, Panacea Biotec, Stelis Biopharma, Virchow Biotech and Morepen.

In the meantime, for the Serum Institute, the contract with Russia undoubtedly represents a step forward, given the global promise symbolized by the largest vaccine manufacturer (by volume), which has been brutally slowed by the escalation of cases. in India, which forced the company to produce doses almost exclusively for its country.

In fact, although around 1,500 million doses are released each year against various diseases, the only approved vaccine currently under development against Covid is Covishield, by Oxford-AstraZeneca.

In addition, although it is not approved, the Serum participates in the development of Novavax, perhaps the first Covid vaccine from the “protein subunit” platform to hit the market, and they are conducting a trial, still in phase 1, with the laboratory Codagenix, which could become the first vaccine against Covid based on an “attenuated” virus, the administration of which, in addition, would be done by the nasal route.

Adar Poonawalla, CEO of Serum, welcomed the agreement with Russia (of which, he assured, “millions of doses will be released in the coming months”), and stressed: “With a High efficacy and a good safety profile, it is essential that the Sputnik vaccine be fully accessible to people in India and around the world. Given the uncertainty of the virus, it is important that international institutes and governments collaborate and strengthen the fight against the pandemic ”.

PS