Bharat Biotech's nasal booster dose gets approval for trials in India

New Delhi : Bharat Biotech has received an approval for Phase III clinical trials of an intranasal booster dose on people who have received both doses of Covaxin. The trials will be conducted at nine locations in India.

The nasal booster dose will be easy to administer to mass people.

Bharat Biotech has said that the nasal vaccine, BBV154, stimulates immune responses at the site of infection -- the nose -- and is very effective in blocking infection and transmission of Covid-19.

The company also mentioned that it is easy to administer the nasal drops and does not require a skilled professional for it, enabling the mass vaccination process.

The Hyderabad-based vaccine manufacturer had last month sought the drug regulator's approval to conduct phase-III trials of the nasal vaccine.

The fresh approval comes soon after Bharat Biotech's Covaxin and Serum Institute of India's Covishield were cleared for sale in the market.

It must be noted that market approval does not mean that the vaccine will be available at the shops.

The market sale of the two vaccines was approved under the New Drugs and Clinical Trials Rules, 2019.