COVID-19 vaccine: Sputnik Light could be India's first single dose vaccine

New Delhi, May 14: Russia's Sputnik Light could be the first single-dose vaccine to be used in India, in what could be game changer for India amid vaccine crisis. Reportedly, Dr Reddy's expected to hold talks with the government and the regulator in June for immediate launch.

India will examine the claim that a single dose of Russian vaccine 'Sputnik Light' can provide protection from the novel coronavirus infection, NITI Aayog member V K Paul had said last Friday.

Sputnik V is a two-dose vaccine taken at a gap of three weeks. The unique feature of it is that the antigens in the first and second dose are different from each other. In other vaccines, both doses are the same.

"In the case of Sputnik Light, they (developers) are saying that the first dose is enough. We are examining this claim. We will go through its data and immunogenicity, and after that we will see. Let more information come in," Paul had said.

Paul noted that if the claims of the vaccine developer are true, it can help double the speed of vaccination in India.

"It is very promising, if there is protection from single dosage as they have claimed. It is very encouraging and makes us feel very optimistic. Single-dose vaccines can increase the speed of vaccination, but the merit and the processing of their request, as and when it comes, will be based on scientific data and information," he noted.

India's drug regulator had last month granted permission for restricted emergency use of the Russian COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V with certain conditions.

Sputnik Light Efficacy

Sputnik Light "demonstrated 79.4% efficacy" compared to 91.6% for the two-shot Sputnik V. The efficacy rate was calculated based on data obtained from Russians vaccinated with a single injection, having not received the second one for any reason during the mass vaccination program between December 5, 2020 and April 15, 2021.

An efficacy level of almost 80% is higher than that of many two-dose vaccines.

Sputnik Light has proven effective against all new strains of coronavirus, as demonstrated by the Gamaleya Center during laboratory tests.

Phase I/II of the Safety and Immunogenicity Study of the Sputnik Light vaccine has demonstrated that:

• Sputnik Light can elicit the development of antigen specific IgG antibodies in 96.9% of individuals on the 28th day after vaccination;
• The Sputnik Light vaccine elicits the development of virus neutralizing antibodies in 91.67% of individuals on the 28th day post immunization;
• Cellular immune response against the S Protein of SARS-CoV-2 develops in 100% of volunteers on the 10th day;
• The immunization of individuals with pre-existing immunity against SARS-CoV-2 with Sputnik Light can elicit the increase of the level of antigen specific IgG antibodies by more than 40x in 100% of subjects 10 days after immunization;
• No serious adverse events were registered after vaccination with Sputnik Light.

Price, storage of Sputnik Light

The vaccine is easy to store at temperatures ranging from two to eight degrees Celsius. It is also expected to cost less than $10. This one-dose jab will also allow for a large population to be inoculated.

Sputnik Light will help to prevent the spread of coronavirus through the faster immunisation of larger population groups, as well as supporting high immunity levels in those who have already been infected previously.