India’s 1st large-scale trial of two new TB vaccines launched

Question: Recently Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) launched India’s first large-scale trial for two new vaccines, named IMMUVAC and VPM1002 to fight against:
(a) TB
(b) HIV
(c) Japanese Encephalitis
(d) Ebola
Answer: (a)
Related facts:

  • Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) launched India’s first large-scale trial for two new tuberculosis (TB) vaccines named IMMUVAC and VPM1002.
  • These vaccines aim to prevent infection (pre-exposure) or prevent primary progression or reactivation of latent TB infection (post-exposure).
  • Both vaccines have been manufactured by Indian pharmaceutical companies.
  • Immuvac, which is also known as Mycobacterium Indicus Pranii (MIP), has been manufactured by Ahmedabad based Cadila Pharmaceuticals.
  • Another vaccine VPM1002 is manufactured by Serum institute of India, located in Pune, Maharashtra.
  • It should be known that until now Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine is widely used in routine Expanded Programme of Immunization (EPI) across the world.
  • Need for the new vaccine is being felt since last many years as over a century old BCG vaccine, for this purpose, provides poor protection against pulmonary disease in adolescents and adults.
  • Trial of these vaccines is being carried out upon more than 12,000 healthy household contacts of newly diagnosed TB patients from across six states including Delhi, Maharashtra, Odisha and Karnataka.

Links:
https://www.financialexpress.com/lifestyle/health/first-time-ever-indias-to-conduct-its-biggest-tuberculosis-preventive-trial-with-two-new-vaccines/1662803/
https://www.cdc.gov/tb/topic/basics/vaccines.htm