Indian Scientists unveiled first indigenous and cheaper vaccine for rotavirus

The First fully indigenous and cheaper vaccine has been unveiled by the Indian scientists to prevent severe rotavirus diarrhoea, which kills more than 1 lakh children under five in India every year.

The results of the Phase III clinical trials of the Rotavac vaccine released at an international conference pegged its efficacy at 56 per cent in the first year of life. The achievement is a mop up of efforts spanning 28 years.

"A Rotavac is a oral vaccine given to infants in a three-dose course at the ages of 6, 10 and 14 weeks alongside routine immunisations recommended at these ages."

“Rotavac significantly reduced severe rotavirus diarrhoea by more than half,” M.K. Bhan, former Secretary, Department of Biotechnology, who isolated the rotavirus strain in 1985 while pursuing research at AIIMS, told here in New Delhi.

K. Vijay Raghavan, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology said, “The results indicate that the vaccine, if licensed, could save the lives of thousands of children each year in India.”

“We are planning to file a dossier with the DCGI in July. We will come to the market after getting the requisite regulatory clearances,” Krishna M. Ella, CMD, Bharat Biotech, said.

Bharat Biotech, which has been associated in the development of vaccine candidates and clinical trials, has announced a price of $1 per dose - a much cheaper amount compared to other rotavirus vaccines available in the market. But its commercial production will kick start only after getting clearance from Drug Control General of India (DCGI).

The existing two licensed Rotavirus vaccines which were already introduced in more than 40 countries remain out of reach for many in the developing world.