Budget 2018-19

  They said the new vaccine design, described in the PNAS journal, could help fill global vaccination gaps and could be applied to vaccines against other diseases. Scientists have developed a new protein-based vaccine candidate for COVID-19 that they say is much easier to produce and does not need refrigeration. The research team at Boston Children’s Hospital, US, noted that currently available Covid vaccines require cold storage and sophisticated manufacturing capacity, which makes it difficult to produce and distribute them widely, especially in less developed countries. They said the new vaccine design, described in the PNAS journal, could help fill global vaccination gaps and could be applied to vaccines against other diseases. The new vaccine candidate elicited strong immune responses against  SARS-CoV-2 , the virus that causes COVID-19, and its variants in mice, the researchers said. The vaccine was successfully freeze-dried and later reconstituted without losing efficac...

  India has a robust mechanism to evaluate data, says Union Health Minister Discussions are underway whether India should revert to four or eight weeks interval for Covishield vaccine and the emerging evidence regarding efficacy of partial versus full immunisation is also being considered, Chairman of India’s COVID-19 Working Group of NTAGI, Dr N K, Arora said. He stressed that the decision to increase the gap between two doses of  Covishield  from 4-6 weeks to 12-16 weeks was based on scientific decision and there was no dissenting voice among the National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI) members. “COVID-19 and the vaccination are very dynamic. Tomorrow, if the vaccine platform tells us that a narrower interval is better for our people, even if the benefit is 5%-10%, the Committee will take the decision on the basis of merit and its wisdom.On the other hand, if it turns out that the current decision is fine, we will continue with it,” Arora said. Meanwhil...

  North Korea has contended that some nations are hoarding stock of vaccines while others are suffering from a lack of supplies North Korea has slammed some countries for storing an excessive stock of COVID-19 vaccines while others suffer from a lack of supplies. In an official statement presented at the 74th World Health Assembly last week, North Korea also urged the World Health Organization (WHO) to help achieve a fair distribution of the vaccines across the globe. “The development of  COVID-19 vaccines  and medicines might be the achievement for the common mankind whereas an unfair reality is to be seen that some countries are procuring and storing the vaccines more than its needs by inspiring the vaccine nationalism plainly when other countries can’t even procure it with their affordability,” it said, reported Yonhap News Agency. Critising further Pyongyang also alleged countries for engaging in “national egoism with the vaccine and making bottleneck for the mass pro...

  Union health ministry has issued a revised guidelines, recommending the EUA/off-label use of Tocilizumab drug in case of severe diseases, preferably within 24 to 48 hours of the onset of the disease The Union health ministry on Thursday issued a revised ‘Clinical Guidance for Management of Adult COVID-19 Patients’ recommending the EUA/off-label use of Tocilizumab drug in case of severe diseases, preferably within 24 to 48 hours of the onset of the disease or ICU admission. The guidelines issued by AIIMS, ICMR-COVID-19 National Task Force and the Joint Monitoring Group (DGHS) under the ministry stated that Tocilizumab (a drug that modifies the immune system or its functioning) may be considered in patients with significantly raised inflammatory markers and not improving despite use of steroids with there being no active bacterial/fungal/tubercular infection. They also recommended off-label use of convalescent plasma only in the early moderate disease, preferably within seven days ...

  Pakistan launched a five-day anti-polio vaccination drive on Monday, despite challenges by the deepening third wave of the coronavirus across the country. Pakistan launched a five-day anti-polio vaccination drive on Monday, despite challenges by the deepening third wave of the coronavirus across the country.Around 285,000 frontline workers, respecting COVID-19 safety protocols, will go door-to-door in all 156 districts across Pakistan to give polio drops, according to an official statementIt said that over 40 million children under the age of five will be given anti-polio vaccine during the campaign that aims to raise the immunity of children that remain at risk of the crippling disease. It is an absolute must that all our eligible children stay protected against vaccine preventable diseases including polioIt’s every Pakistani’s national duty to ensure that your own children, as well as those around you, are administered polio vaccine without fail, said Dr. Faisal Sultan, the Spe...

  Also, continued collaboration across institutions was necessary to come out of the current situation as well as ward off catastrophic situations, he said Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) Director General Shekhar C Mande on Sunday warned that the COVID-19 crisis was far from being over and allowing a “third wave” by lowering our guard is fraught with grave consequences.Also, continued collaboration across institutions was necessary to come out of the current situation as well as ward off catastrophic situations arising out of climate change and over dependence on fossil fuels which had the potential to wipe out the entire humanity, he said Mande was speaking on “India’s response to Covid-19 from S & T perspective” at a virtual “National Science Day Lectures,” organised by Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology here. The expert clarified that India is nowhere near achieving herd immunity and as such people should continue to wear masks and maintain social dis...