‘Enhanced immunity, no serious adverse events’: Lancet releases Covaxin’s Phase 1 trial data

The vaccine was developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the National Institute of Virology (NIV).

By: Satata Karmakar | | Updated: January 23, 2021 8:58 am

‘Covaxin has enhanced immunity, no serious adverse events’: Lancet

At a time when coronavirus vaccines are being administered in various parts of the country, there is also a steep rise in concerns regarding the side effects of the vax shot. But, there is a good news. Phase 1 trial report of India’s first indigenous vaccine against COVID-19, Covaxin, showed enhanced immune response without any serious side effects in the participants. Also Read - Akshay Kumar, Piyush Mishra, Sonam Kapoor and more Bollywood celebs who opened up on facing sexual abuse in childhood

Covaxin Was Given The Emergency Authorisation By The Indian Government

The Indian government had given Covaxin emergency use authorisation in clinical trial mode. The vaccine was developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune. Also Read - Test Article 2 Covid 19 3rd wave

Covaxin, which is currently undergoing phase-3 trials, had raised concerns among experts over its emergency approval earlier this month by India’s drug regulator. Also Read - COVID-19 Live Updates: Cases in India surge to 10,757,610 while death toll reaches 1,54,392 12d

The vaccine, codenamed BBV152, was well tolerated in all dose groups with no vaccine-related serious adverse events, noted the authors of the study funded by Bharat Biotech.

Reported Adverse Events Are Mild And Moderate

According to the authors all adverse events were mild and moderate, and were more frequent after the first dose, adding that one adverse event was reported but was unrelated to the vaccine.

The randomised phase 1 trial to assess the safety and immunogenicity of BBV152 was carried at 11 hospitals across India.

Adults aged 18-55 years who were deemed healthy by the investigator were eligible. Between July 13 and 30, last year, 827 participants were screened, of whom 375 were enrolled.

Among the enrolled participants, 100 each were randomly assigned to the three vaccine groups, and 75 were randomly assigned to the control group.

The Doses Of Covaxin And The Mild Adverse Events You Can Expect

Two intramuscular doses of vaccines were administered 14 days apart. “BBV152 led to tolerable safety outcomes and enhanced immune responses. The vaccine was well tolerated in all dose groups with no vaccine-related serious adverse events,” the authors of the study said.

So there will be mild adverse events… what are those? According to the experts, the most common adverse event was pain at the injection site, followed by headache, fatigue, and fever.

Covaxin is an inactivated vaccine developed by chemically treating novel coronavirus samples to make them incapable of reproduction.

This process leaves the viral proteins, including the spike protein of the coronavirus which it uses to enter the human cells, intact.

Given as two doses, three weeks apart, the viral proteins in the vaccine activate the immune system and prepare people for future infections with the actual infectious virus.

According to Bharat Biotech, the therapeutic can be stored at room temperature for at least a week.

Published : January 22, 2021 4:36 pm | Updated:January 23, 2021 8:58 am

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