Russia has approved Covid-19 Vaccine for widespread use. This Vaccine is named as “Sputnik V” in reference to the world’s first satellite launched during the cold war space race. “Sputnik V” is becoming the world’s first Covid-19 Vaccine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin had made this annoncement and informed that this vaccine was tested with one of his daughters.
Speaking at a government meeting on state television, Putin said the vaccine, developed by Moscow’s Gamaleya Institute is safe and effective.
Russia had already received requests from more than 20 countries for 1 billion doses of its newly-registered COVID-19 vaccine.
Mass production of the vaccine was likely to begin soon. In Russia, Doctors and teachers would be offered immunisation first, and the Vaccination would be voluntary.
The “Sputnik V” vaccine is administered in two doses and consists of two serotypes of a human adenovirus.
The Russian vaccine’s approval by the Health Ministry comes before trials that would normally involve thousands of participants, commonly known as a Phase III trial.
Russia’s approval of COVID-19 vaccine after less than two months of human testing prompted alarm among global health experts, who said that with no full trial data, the vaccine is hard to trust.