Bharat Biotech To Launch Oral Cholera Vaccine Amid Global Shortage

India's Bharat Biotech's Hillchol, an oral cholera vaccine, has completed a critical late-stage trial.

India's Bharat Biotech announced that its oral cholera vaccine has successfully completed a late-stage trial.

The company plans to produce up to 200 million doses annually, addressing the growing cholera outbreak and treatment shortages.

Bharat Biotech's vaccine, named Hillchol, has received approval from India's drug regulator. The company will seek pre-qualification from the World Health Organization (WHO) to supply major buyers like UNICEF.

Focus on Africa

The company aims to prioritise the African continent, where the cholera situation is dire. Bharat Biotech is open to allowing African countries to procure the drug substance and conduct final manufacturing locally.

Production will begin at Bharat Biotech's Hyderabad facility, which has an annual capacity of 45 million doses. The company awaits approval for another facility to increase production to 200 million doses annually, as reported by Firstpost.

Investment and Development

A source informed Reuters that approximately $100 million was invested in the facilities for manufacturing Hillchol. However, Bharat Biotech did not disclose specific investment details.

The late-stage trial involved around 3,600 participants from India and demonstrated that Hillchol is safe and "non-inferior" to existing oral vaccines. Further details were not provided by the company.

Global Cholera Statistics

The WHO reported 249,793 cholera cases and 2,137 deaths across 25 countries in the first half of this year. This is a significant increase compared to 166,442 cases and 69 deaths in the same period last year.

This surge led to a request for 102 million doses of oral vaccines, double the previous year's production of 51 million doses. Bharat Biotech aims to address this shortage with Hillchol, as per media reports.

Vaccine Administration

Hillchol can be administered to individuals over one year old. Developed under license from Singapore's Hilleman Laboratories, it requires two doses – one on day zero and another on day fourteen.

Bharat Biotech highlighted a global shortage of 40 million doses per year in a release. The company plans to bridge this gap with its new vaccine.

The company's efforts reflect a significant step towards combating cholera globally by ensuring sufficient vaccine availability amidst rising demand and outbreaks.