Serum Institute of India Seeks Centre’s Approval For Covid-19 Vaccine Covovax As Booster Shot For Adults

Serum Institute of India (SII) seeks Centre's approval for market authorisation of its COVID-19 vaccine, Covovax as a booster dose for those aged 18 years and above.

Written by: Shrimansi Kaushik Edited by: Shrimansi Kaushik

Published: December 22, 2022, 5:08 PM IST

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https://www.india.com/news/india/covid-19-latest-updates-serum-institute-of-india-seeks-centres-approval-for-covid-19-vaccine-covovax-as-booster-shot-for-adults-5816931/ Copy

SII seeks approval from Centre to use its Covid-19 vaccine Covavax as a booster shot for adults. (File Photo)

New Delhi: Serum Institute of India (SII) has sought the DCGI’s approval for market authorisation of its COVID-19 vaccine- Covovax- as a booster dose for those aged 18 years. The SII has sought clearance for the vaccine to be administered to adults who have been jabbed with two doses of Covishield or Covaxin.

It may be noted that Covovax is the indigenous version of a Covid-19 vaccine developed by Novovax Inc and manufactured under a licence of the Serum Institute of India. In terms of formulation, it is a recombinant protein vaccine that uses spike proteins to familiarise the human body with how to develop immunity against SARS-CoV-2.

In December 2021, Covovax was granted the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) approval to be used as a booster shot to counter the scare posed by variants of coronavirus. The WHO stated in a press release, “The vaccine, named Covovax, is produced by the Serum Institute of India (SII) under licence from Novavax and is part of the COVAX facility portfolio, giving a much-needed boost to ongoing efforts to vaccinate more people in lower-income countries.”

Highlighting the milestone, SII CEO Adar Poonawalla said, “This is yet another milestone in our fight against Covid-19, Covovax is now WHO-approved for emergency use, showing excellent safety and efficacy. Thank you all for a great collaboration.”

SII also manufactures the Covishield vaccine that has been rolled out widely in the Indian vaccination drive.

HOW DOES COVOVAX WORK IN THE BODY?

• Once injected into the body, the nanoparticles attract the body’s immunity cells, forcing them to respond quickly and strongly.
• The nanoparticles are then carried by immune cells known as antigen-presenting cells that rip apart the spike protein and display the fragments on their surface.
• This activates the body’s B cells that start pouring out antibodies.
• The newly generated antibodies ‘remember’ the virus’s spike protein get activated when a real virus tries to infect the system.