This archive report was first published on 3 May 2021.
India's Covaxin vaccine has been found to neutralise the B.1.617 Covid-19 variant, which is believed to be driving the second wave in India.
Approved for emergency use on January 3, Covaxin has an efficacy of 78 per cent and is also able to neutralise the UK variant B.1.1.7 detected in Kenya.
According to a study published on the bioRxiv preprint server, Covaxin, manufactured by Bharat Biotech in partnership with the National Institute of Virology and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), was effective against the variant.
Researchers from the National Institute of Virology found that the serum obtained from individuals who had recovered from Covid-19, and Covaxin, were able to neutralise the B.1.617 variant.
"The assurance of neutralisation of [the] B.1.617 variant with sera of BBV152 (Covaxin) vaccine and recovered Covid-19 cases sera will provide the much-needed boost to the Covid-19 vaccination programme in India," the researchers say.
