Corbevax vaccine of Biologoical E is undergoing phase 3 trials, and it could very well be the most affordable vaccine in India. It is expected to be priced at below Rs 500.

A recombinant vaccine, Corbevax has shown promising results in Phase 1 and Phase 2 trials. The pricing is being worked upon by the vaccine company.

To develop and produce the vaccine, Biological E is working with Baylor college of medicine, Texas.

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An order has been placed by the central government for an order of 30 crore vaccines for which an advance payment of Rs 1500 crore has been made to the company.

Covishield developed by the Serum Institute of India is available at Rs 600 per dose at private hospitals while for state governments it is available at Rs 300 per dose. Bharat Biotech made Covaxin is available at Rs 1,200 per dose at private hospitals while for state governments it is priced at Rs 400 per dose. Until its domestic production begins, Russian vaccine Sputnik V will be available at Rs 995 per dose.

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Corbevax is a “recombinant protein sub-unit” vaccine. This means that it is made up of a specific part of virion of SARS-CoV-2, the spike protein on the virus’s surface, the corona.

Through the interactions of the spike protein, the virus enters the host cells in the body. In the host cell, the virus replicates and causes disease. When the spike protein alone is given to the body, it is not expected to be harmful. This is because the rest of the virus is absent. An immune response against the injected spike protein can then be expected in the body. As a result, when the real virus attempts to infect the body, the vaccinated body will already have an immune response ready that will make it unlikely for the person to fall severely ill.

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This recombinant protein technology has been used for decades to make hepatitis B vaccines. The idea behind the approach of recombinant technology is to use the capacity of infection and the immunological properties of the live vector to elicit an immune response against its own proteins. It also helps in generating immune response towards the heterologous protein being presented. A number of pathogens including bacteria, such as Salmonella typhi and bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) and viruses like vaccinia and adenovirus have been investigated as live recombinant vector vaccines.

Corbevax-vaccine will be among the first Covid-19 vaccines to use this platform. A protein-based vaccine against Covid19 has been developed by Novavax also, which is still waiting for emergency use authorisation from various regulators.