Zydus Cadila gets permission to conduct phase III trial for two-dose Covid vaccine

India’s drug regulator has given permission to Zydus Cadila for conducting Phase III trial on the two-dose regimen of its needle-free Covid-19 vaccine, ZyCoV-D.

In a meeting held last month, the Subject Expert Committee (SEC), which advises the drug regulator-granted permission to the company for conducting Phase III trials on its Covid-19 vaccine.

“After detailed deliberation, the committee recommended for grant of permission to conduct the Phase III clinical trial subject to the condition that, the volume of blood to be withdrawn in the pediatric cohort shall be as per National Ethical Guidelines for Biomedical and Health Research Involving Human Participants issued by ICMR,” said the minutes of the meeting.

The drug regulator had approved Zydus’ vaccine on August 20 for emergency use in India.

The three-dose vaccine which is to be given 28 days apart is likely to be introduced in the vaccination drive this month.

The company was evaluating a 2 dose regime with 3mg in each dose.