4 years ago
In a major breakthrough regarding the coronavirus vaccine, Russia on Monday released the first batch of the ‘Sputnik V’ vaccine against COVID-19 into civil circulation for public use.
The Sputnik V vaccine for the deadly pathogen has been developed by Russia's Gamaleya National Research Center of Epidemiology and Microbiology and the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF).
According to the Russian Health Ministry, as reported by news agency ANI, the authorities will soon start the regional deliveries of the much-awaited Sputnik V vaccine for the highly contagious coronavirus caused by SARS-CoV-2.
"The first batch of the 'Gam-COVID-Vac' [Sputnik V] vaccine for the prevention of the new coronavirus infection, developed by the Gamaleya National Research Center of Epidemiology and Microbiology of the Ministry of Health of Russia, has passed the necessary quality tests in the laboratories of Roszdravnadzor [medical device regulator] and has been released into civil circulation," the ministry said in a statement, as reported by ANI.
Last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin had announced that the country has successfully developed the world's first vaccine offering "sustainable immunity" against coronavirus.
The country has dubbed the vaccine "Sputnik V" after the Soviet-era satellite that was the first launched into space.
Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin expressed hope on Sunday that the majority of the Russian capital's residents would be vaccinated against the coronavirus within several months.
According to the health ministry, the delivery of the first batches of the Russian vaccine to the country's regions is planned in the nearest future.
Meanwhile, amid the speculations regarding the safety and efficiency of the Sputnik V vaccine, the preliminary results of early-phase non-randomised vaccine trials published in The Lancet Medical Journal have shown that Sputnik V produced elicit an antibody response in participants with no serious side effects.
The findings are based on two small phase trials conducted on 76 participants over a period of 42 days.
The first trial studied a frozen formulation of the vaccine, while the other involved a lyophilised (freeze-dried) formulation of Sputnik V.
The vaccine-induced antibody response in all of the participants within 21 days, as per news agency PTI.
