The Russian government said on Monday that more than 250 Moscow residents received the dose of its first Covid-19 vaccine, Sputnik V, in the past five days, according to a report.
The vast majority of them are in good health, the anti-coronavirus crisis center told reporters today.
“During the last five days of clinical trials of the vaccine against coronavirus infection, more than 250 Moscow residents were vaccinated in the seven centers that opened first. Doctors closely monitor the health status of those vaccinated. The absolute majority is in excellent health: 75% “. of the participants today do not observe any symptoms or ailments, ”said the crisis center, according to the Russian news agency.
On Friday, Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko told reporters that the first batch of Russia’s Covid-19 vaccine is likely to be delivered to all regions of the country by September 14, according to TASS.
“The first batches of the vaccine have already been shipped to test the supply chain, now we are checking the delivery system so that the staff are aware of it. The first small batches have already been shipped to all regions, the Leningrad region as well to receive [the vaccine] among the first. In fact, the first samples of the vaccine will be delivered on Monday, “Murashko said.
The development comes after a week when Russia released the first batch of the Sputnik V vaccine into civilian circulation, the Russian Health Ministry reported.
The Sputnik V Covid vaccine, which is developed by the Gamaleya Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology under the Russian Ministry of Health, may obtain permission to release a batch of its vaccine for civilian use, said the institute’s deputy director of research. and associate member of the Russian Academy. of Sciences, Denis Logunov said previously, according to a report.
On August 11, Russia became the first country to license a Covid-19 vaccine, calling it “Sputnik V” in homage to the world’s first satellite, launched by the Soviet Union. But Western experts have warned against its use until all tests and internationally approved regulatory steps have been taken. The vaccine is in phase 3 trials.
The vaccine produced an antibody response in all participants in the early-stage trials, according to results previously published by The Lancet medical journal that were hailed by Moscow as a response to its critics.
Results from the two trials, conducted in June-July this year and involving 76 participants, showed that 100% of the participants developed antibodies to the new coronavirus and did not have serious side effects, The Lancet said.
However, a group of international scientists questioned the results of the Lancet medical journal, saying some of the findings seemed unlikely, Bloomberg reported.
The researchers raised concerns about seemingly identical levels of antibodies in several study participants who were inoculated with the experimental vaccine. This and other patterns in the data present “several different points of concern,” according to an open letter written by Temple University professor Enrico Bucci and signed by more than a dozen other scientists.
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