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Title : COVISHIELD AND COVAXIN: All about it
Date : Nov 27, 2021
Description :
GS II
Topic à Health Related Issues
- COVISHIELD:
- It is the brand name for an Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine candidate known as AZD1222 or ChAdOx 1 nCoV19 in technical terms.
- It is a variant of the vaccine produced by the University of Oxford in partnership with AstraZeneca, a Swedish-British pharmaceutical company.
- The production partner in India is the Serum Institute of India (SII).
- Action and Constituents:
- It's based on a weaker variant of the common cold virus or the adenovirus that chimps carry.
- The genetic material of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein (protrusions) present on the virus's outer surface that assist it adhere to the human cell is contained in this viral vector.
- This protein is meant to be recognised as a threat by the body's immune system, which will work to develop antibodies against it.
- It is regarded one of the global frontrunners for the Covid-19 vaccine since it elicited an immunological response in people against the new coronavirus in early trials.
- COVAXIN:
- It is the only Covid-19 vaccine made in India.
- Developed by Bharat Biotech, Hyderabad, in conjunction with the National Institute of Virology, Pune, of the Indian Council of Medical Research.
- Action and Constituents:
- It is an inactivated vaccine 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 recognise it and mount an immunological response.
- It's likely that it'll go after more than just the spike protein.
- It also seeks to stimulate an immunological response against the nucleocapsid protein (the shell of the virus that encloses its genetic material).
- COVAXIN contains immunogens (epitopes) from additional genes in addition to those from Spike protein, making it more likely to function against newer forms of the virus, including the UK variety.
- Antigens are any material that binds uniquely to an antibody, whereas immunogens are any stimulus that causes a humoral or cell-mediated immune response.
- Antigens and immunogens are both antigens, however not all antigens are immunogens.
- COVAXIN's approval provides India with an extra vaccine protection, particularly against mutant strains in a dynamic pandemic situation.
- Source à The Hindu à 27/11/21 à Page Number 12