MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 11th August, 2020) The technology used for developing Russian Microbiology Research Center Gamaleya's vaccine against COVID-19 has already been implemented while creating vaccines against other diseases, therefore there is no need to postpone registration, Nikolay Briko, the Russian Health Ministry's chief epidemiologist, told Sputnik on Tuesday.
Russia's RBC newspaper has reported that pharmaceutical companies have called on the Health Ministry to delay the registration of the vaccine.
"I do not understand at all why this issue has emerged. If we are talking about the Gamaleya Center's vaccine, it has not appeared out of nothing. The center has been conducting research in this area for over 10 years, it has created vaccines against Ebola and the middle East respiratory syndrome. The same adenovirus-based technology was used during the creation of the COVID-19 vaccine, it is not subject to any review or delay, since the technology has already been practiced," Briko said.
Amid the coronavirus pandemic, vaccine registration may be sped-up, and this why post-registration control is extremely important, the epidemiology expert explained.
"I believe in this case there is no reason to debar vaccine registration, as it has proven safe, and efficiency is studied," Briko added.
