The government has gi🐻ven nod to use of Omicr𓄧on-specific mRNA-based booster vaccine under Mission Covid Suraksha.
The news agency PTI in its report said India's drug controller has granted emergency use au𒉰thorisation for the Omicron-specific mRNA-based booster vaccine developed by Gennova Biopharmaceuticals.
It said Department of Biotechnology (DBT) had facilitated establishing Gennova's mRNA-based next-generation vaccine manufacturing for developing the platform technology from proof of concep﷽t till Phase I clinical trial of the prototype vaccine developed against the Wuhan strain, an official statement said.
"GEMCOVAC-OM is an Omicron-specific mRNA-based booster vaccine developed using the indigenous platfꦉorm technology by Gennova in collaboration with DBT," it sa🗹id.
"GEMCOVAC-OM getting Emergency Use Authorisation from the of♓fice of the Drug Controller General of India is a testimony of our efforts to initiate, nurture and enable this 'pandemic ready' technology," the report quoted Sanjay Singh, CEO of Gennova Biopharmaceuticals Ltd, said.
GEMCOVAC-OM is a thermostabl⛎e vaccine which does not require ultra-cold chain infrastructure, making it easy for pan-India💖 deployment.
"Infrastructure to deploy vaccines in India at 2🔴-8 degrees Celsius exists today and this innovation is tailored for the existing established supply-chain infrastructure. The vaccine does not need ultra-low temperature conditions for transport and storage," the report quoted Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh said.
It said the vaccine is delivered intr📖adermally using 𓂃a needle-free injection device system.
The project was supported under 'Mission Covid Suraksha', the India✱n Covid-19 Vaccine Development Mission' by DBT's dedicated Mission Implementation Unit at Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC), for further clinical development and scale up of the prototype vaccine, which received emergency 💖use authorisation in June last year, it mentioned.
Rajesh S Gokhale, Secretary, DBT, and Chairperson, BIRAC, said GEMCOVAC-OM was developed using the mRNA-based disease agnostic platform technology which can be used to make other vaccines in a relatively short development timeline, it mentioned.
