The drug regulator of India approved Zydus Cadila’s three-dose COVID19 DNA vaccine for emergency use authorization for children 12 years and above. This is the second homegrown vaccine that has got approval against the deadly COVID19 infection. 

The company has applied for authorization of ZyCov-D on July 1st. It has an efficacy rate of 66.66 % in a late-stage trial of more than 28,000 volunteers nationwide. The company has developed vaccines in partnership with the Department of Biotechnology. ZyCoV-D is the world's first plasmid DNA vaccine against coronavirus. The company has planned to manufacture 100-120 million doses annually.

All about ZyCov-D

ZyCov-D is a three-dose vaccine when injected produces the spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. ZyCov-D is effective against mutant strains of virus-like delta variants which are highly infectious. It will be administered on the 1st day – 28th day – 56th day. It elicits an immune response, which plays a vital role in protection from the disease as well as viral clearance. It is an intradermal vaccine, applied using a ‘needle-free injector’. A needle-free system can lead to a significant reduction in side effects. The vaccine has been developed in partnership with the department under Mission COVID Suraksha.

It is the world's first and India's indigenously developed DNA-based vaccine for COVID-19 to be administered in humans including children and adults 12 years and above. Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin and ZydusCadila’s ZyCov-D are the only two vaccine candidates to have been tested among children in India and developed in India.