CSIR and Aurobindo Pharma collaborate to develop COVID-19 vaccine

New Delhi: Efforts are going on across the globe to develop vaccine for novel coronavirus. In a significant development, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and Aurobindo Pharma Limited have joined hands to develop SARS-CoV-2 vaccine in India.  Three CSIR labs namely Center for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) Hyderabad, Institute of Medical Technology (IMTECH), Chandigarh and Indian Institute of Chemical Biology (IICB), Kolkata are developing vaccine candidates using different technology platforms. Aurobindo Pharma Limited will undertake clinical development and commercialization of the vaccines.

Commenting on this partnership, Dr Shekhar C. Mande, Director General, CSIR, said “Joining of hands of premier CSIR labs with industry for the development of vaccines will amplify India’s efforts in indigenous vaccine development and also help in preparedness for future pandemics”.

Our labs are working on novel proteins for vaccine development that has the potential to address the need for a second-generation vaccine. We are happy to partner with Aurobindo who has proven manufacturing and commercialization capabilities” said Dr. Rakesh Mishra, Director, CSIR-CCMB while commenting on the development strategies for the vaccines.

Mr N. Govindarajan, Managing Director, Aurobindo Pharma Limited, told “We are proud to join hands with CSIR for developing vaccines to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. This collaboration further strengthens our COVID-19 vaccine development efforts. We are already setting up a large-scale facility in Hyderabad for manufacturing COVID-19 vaccine and other viral vaccines.”

Apart from this collaboration, Aurobindo is already developing a vaccine for SARS COV-2 through its wholly-owned US subsidiary Auro Vaccines. The SARS COV-2 vaccine candidate is based on the company’s proprietary replication-competent, attenuated, recombinant vesicular stomatitis (VSV, VesiculoVax™) vaccine delivery platform.

(India Science Wire)