Budget 2018-19

  The pledge builds on the collaboration between   Oxford University , AstraZeneca and SII, the world’s largest maker of vaccines Vaccine maker Serum Institute of India (SII) has pledged 50 million pounds ($66.2 million) to the University of Oxford for setting up a research campus that would also house the institute behind the  AstraZeneca -Oxford COVID-19 shot. The investment was made through the Indian company’s Serum Life Sciences unit, Oxford University said on Wednesday. The research building would be named after Serum’s billionaire owners, the Poonawalla family. The pledge builds on the collaboration between Oxford University, AstraZeneca and SII, the world’s largest maker of vaccines and the producer of a version of the British duo’s COVID-19 shot for low- and middle-income countries. SII has also agreed with the Jenner Institute, which was behind the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, to produce and develop Jenner’s R21/Matrix-M malaria shot on a large scale. Th...

  The Astra and Pfizer vaccines will be given in different orders and with two dosing intervals, four and 12 weeks apart. The University of Oxford is set to begin a trial combining Covid-19 vaccines from AstraZeneca and Pfizer that could enable greater flexibility in the use of scarce supplies globally. The university will begin recruiting 820 participants over 50 years of age across eight UK sites this week, according to a statement Thursday. The Astra and  Pfizer vaccines  will be given in different orders and with two dosing intervals, four and 12 weeks apart. The trial will allow researchers to see whether two shots of different vaccines produce better or worse results than two doses of the same product. The study could be key to relieving pressure on individual vaccine makers to deliver shots if they run into manufacturing difficulties. Mixing vaccines to create an enhanced immune response is common for inoculations targeting diseases such as hepatitis A and B. Combi...

  Adar Poonawalla and Krishna Ella issue joint statement saying they would work together to roll out Covid-19 vaccine After engaging in a war of words, the chiefs of two of India’s leading vaccine makers — Bharat Biotech and Serum Institute of India (SII) — called a truce on Tuesday and pledged to work together for a “smooth roll-out” of Covid-19 vaccines. In a joint statement,  Bharat Biotech  Chairman and Managing Director Krishna Ella and SII Chief Executive Officer Adar Poonawalla said the more important task in front of them was to save the lives and livelihoods of populations in India and the world. “Vaccines are a global public health good and they have the power to save lives and accelerate the return to economic normalcy at the earliest,” the statement read. “Now that two Covid-19 vaccines have been issued EUA (emergency use authorisation) in India, the focus is on manufacturing, supply, and distribution…Both companies are fully engaged in this activity and consi...

  While the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine made by Serum Institute here has 70.42% efficacy, Bharat Biotech’s still does not have efficacy data as trials are underway in India India’s drug regulator on Sunday gave its final approval to the Oxford-AstraZeneca and Bharat Biotech coronavirus vaccines for restricted use in an emergency situation, giving the country its first two shots for immunising its vast population in the coming weeks. While the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, manufactured by Serum Institute of India (SII), has 70.42 per cent efficacy, the indigenous vaccine from Bharat Biotech does not have efficacy details because the trials are underway. It is doing a study of 25,800 volunteers and around 22,500 participants have been given at least one jab. Both vaccines can be stored at 2-8 degrees Celsius and the companies have been stockpiling them for dispatch once the approvals come. SII has a stockpile of over 50 million doses at the moment and can make 100 million doses per mont...

  This could be the first country to give the regulatory green light for the British drugmaker’s vaccine as the British medicine regulator continues to examine data from the trials India is likely to approve Oxford/AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine for emergency use by next week after its local manufacturer submitted additional data sought by authorities, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Tuesday. This could be the first country to give the regulatory green light for the British drugmaker’s vaccine as the British medicine regulator continues to examine data from the trials. India, the world’s biggest vaccine-making country, wants to start inoculating its citizens next month and is also considering emergency use authorisation applications for vaccines made by Pfizer Inc and local company Bharat Biotech. Getting  Corona vaccines  to the world’s second-most populous country with one of the highest infection rates will also be a big step in the battle a...

  ICMR Director General Balram Bhargava said that in the case of temporary licensure or emergency use, the regulator had to be satisfied with the risk-benefit ratio. Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech International (BBIL) had changed the dosage from 3 micrograms of antigen to 6 micrograms during its Covid-19 vaccine trial, a point that the subject expert committee (SEC) would closely examine when it meets on Wednesday to review its application for an emergency use authorisation (EUA) for Covaxin.The panel would also review the applications of Pfizer-BioNTech and Serum Institute of India (SII) seeking an EUA for their vaccines. While many have raised questions over BBIL applying for an EUA during an ongoing efficacy trial, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the country’s apex health research institute, has defended the move. ICMR Director General Balram Bhargava said that in the case of temporary licensure or emergency use, the regulator had to be satisfied with the risk-ben...