In China, the Kovid-19 vaccine, which can penetrate the human body by breathing, has been approved for emergency use.
The National Medical Products Administration has decided that the world’s first “inhalable” Covid-19 vaccine, developed by CanSino Biotech, can be used as a reminder dose by people who have had two doses of inactivated vaccines.
The vaccine, called “Convidecia Air”, will be an inhaled version of the single-dose Kovid-19 vaccine “Convidecia” developed by the company previously.
The injector version of the vaccine received emergency use approval from China’s National Medicines Administration in February and from the World Health Organization (WHO) in March.
In the inhalable version of the vaccine, instead of an injector, a spray device called a “nebulizer” is used, which converts the vaccine liquid into air bubbles.
The vaccine, which contains a weakened version of the virus, is intended to stimulate the natural route of infection of the respiratory-borne virus, thereby inducing immunity in the body.
Convidecia Air will be the first example among Kovid-19 vaccines to be administered with a nebulizer instead of an injector.
Vaccines in spray form are widely used to protect against respiratory infections such as the flu. The method reduces the production and application costs of vaccines.
It is envisaged that the device, which does not require injectors and needles, will provide convenience in terms of use in remote areas where health access is not sufficient.
Unlike injection liquid, which must be kept in a deep freezer, the liquid of the inhalable vaccine can be stored at 2 to 8 degrees Celsius while maintaining its chemical integrity. It is hoped this will aid in more widespread immune protection globally.
THE RESULTS WERE PUBLISHED IN THE LANCET
In clinical trials for the inhalable vaccine, the results of which were published in the journal “The Lancet”, it was found to elicit a strong immune response. In the trial conducted on 420 adults in Jiangsu province of China, it was found that the vaccine made the cells of the respiratory organs more resistant to the virus in subjects who had received two doses of the Coronavac vaccine, previously developed by Sinovac.
After the immediate use approval, CanSino Biotech shares gained 10 percent on the Shanghai Stock Exchange and 7 percent on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. (AA)