Engichem Life Sciences Conducts Large-Scale pDNA COVID-19 Vaccine Vaccination in India

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Hyowon] Engchem Life Sciences announced on the 28th that its world’s first pDNA COVID-19 vaccine, 'ZyCoV-D' (Jaikobeu-D), for which it has secured manufacturing technology, has become possible to externally verify efficacy and safety as the Indian government is promoting large-scale vaccination for the first time in the world, and based on this vaccination, it will make a full-scale entry into overseas markets.

Indian Prime Minister 'Narendra Modi' announced in a national address on the 25th that COVID-19 preventive vaccination will be conducted nationwide, and from January next year, vaccination will be administered to children aged 15 to 18.

The DNA vaccine developed by Zydus is ZyCoV-D by 'Zydus Cadila' in India, which was approved for emergency use by the Indian government on August 20 for use in those aged 12 and older.

The 'DNA vaccine' injects DNA strands known as 'plasmids' (DNA that exists separately from chromosomes and can replicate independently) containing the spike protein code of the coronavirus DNA. It allows for sustained antibody concentration maintenance, resulting in a relatively long immune maintenance period.

An Engchem Life Sciences official said, "In the situation where the Omicron variant is spreading worldwide, the Indian government's nationwide DNA vaccine vaccination is an expression of confidence in the ability to respond to variant viruses and vaccine technology," adding, "Since the pDNA vaccine ZyCoV-D has been verified for safety and efficacy, we plan to supply the vaccine to advanced countries such as the United States and Europe, starting with Southeast Asia and South America."

He continued, "ZyCoV-D can also be used for children aged 12 and older, has high thermal stability, can be stored at 2~8°C, and can be stored for three months even at 25°C," adding, "This will be a great advantage when targeting markets in Southeast Asia and South American countries where quarantine infrastructure is poor, as storage, transportation, and vaccination will be easy."

Engchem Life Sciences signed a manufacturing license technology transfer contract for the pDNA vaccine ZyCoV-D with Zydus India on November 19 and is currently proceeding with the full-scale technology transfer process. From 2022, Engchem Life Sciences plans to manufacture more than 80 million doses of vaccines annually in Korea and prioritize supply to Southeast Asian and South American countries with poor quarantine infrastructure.

Founded in 1952, 'Zydus' is a global pharmaceutical company in India that developed the world’s first COVID-19 pDNA vaccine proven effective in humans. Zydus was selected as one of India’s top 100 companies by Fortune magazine in 2020, and its sales last year reached about 2.3 trillion KRW. It has received approval from the US FDA for two innovative new drugs (First in class) and 242 generic drugs, and has demonstrated outstanding development capabilities in new drugs and vaccines, including developing the first quadrivalent flu vaccine in India.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.