India approves ZyCoV-D -DNA COVID-19 vaccine for children
By Bisola Adeyemo
India has approved ZyCoV-D -DNA plasmid-based COVID-19 vaccine for all children ranging from aged 12 or older from next month, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Tuesday.
The world’s first DNA-based COVID-19 vaccine, developed by Indian pharmaceutical company Cadila Healthcare, with support from the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council, won for emergency use in India last month.
From October, the company, better known as Zydus Cadila, will produce 10 million doses a month.
The health ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The sources sought anonymity because they were not authorised to talk to media.
The vaccine is the only one approved for children in India, which has given a total of 825.9 million doses to adults among its population of nearly 1.4 billion.