News Highlights
The national Covid taskforce is reviewing a proposal to evaluate the efficacy of the Bacillus Calmette Guerin (BCG) vaccine as an immune booster with Covid-19 vaccine Covaxin.
With a plan to possibly carry out an open label randomized controlled trial to determine if it reduced incidence or severity of the viral disease
With Bacillus Calmette Guerin (BCG)there have been two trials in India as well—
- One is to evaluate the efficacy of BCG in reducing the incidence and severity of Covid-19 in the high risk population.
- The other study has been to evaluate the effectiveness of BCG vaccine in reducing morbidity and mortality in elderly individuals in Covid-19 hotspots in the country.
About Bacillus Calmette Guerin (BCG) Vaccine
- The Bacillus Calmette Guérin (BCG) vaccination is used to prevent tuberculosis (TB).
- BCG was created by altering a Mycobacterium bovis strain (that causes TB in cattle).
- In 1921, it was first used on people.
- BCG is now the sole authorised vaccine for tuberculosis prevention.
- It is the most extensively used vaccination in the world, with around 120 million doses administered each year and a great safety record.
- BCG was first used on a small basis in India in 1948, and it became part of the National TB Control Program in 1962.
- BCG gives excellent protection against severe forms of tuberculosis in children. In adolescents and adults, the protective effect varies greatly, ranging from 0% to 80%.
- BCG also protects neonates from bacterial and respiratory infections, as well as other mycobacterial illnesses like leprosy and Buruli’s ulcer.
- It’s also used to treat cancers of the urinary bladder and malignant melanoma with immunotherapy.
About Covaxin
- Manufacture – Bharat Biotech, Hyderabad, collaborated with the National Institute of Virology, Pune, of the Indian Council of Medical Research.
- Features of Vaccine
- It is an inactivated vaccination that is created by inactivating (killing) the disease-causing bacteria.
- This disables the pathogen’s ability to multiply while leaving it intact enough for the immune system to recognize it and mount an immunological response.
- More than simply the spike protein is expected to be targeted.
- It also seeks to stimulate an immunological response against the nucleocapsid protein (the shell of the virus that encloses its genetic material).
Source : Hindustan Times