Q. In the context of vaccines manufactured to prevent COVID-19 pandemic, consider the following statements:
1. The Serum Institute of India produced COVID-19 vaccine named Covishield using mRNA platform.
2. Sputnik. V vaccine is manufactured using vector-based platform.
3. COVAXIN is an inactivated pathogen-based vaccine.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
Exp) Option b is the correct answer.
Statement 1 is incorrect: The Serum Institute of India produced COVID-19 vaccine named Covishield but not using mRNA platform. It has been prepared using the viral vector platform. In the vaccine, a chimpanzee adenovirus – ChAdOx1 – has been modified to enable it to carry the COVID-19 spike protein into the cells of humans. This cold virus is basically incapable of infecting the receiver, but can very well teach the immune system to prepare a mechanism against such viruses.
The same technology was used to prepare vaccines for viruses like Ebola.
Statement 2 is correct: Sputnik V, the world’s first registered vaccine, is based on the human adenoviral vector-based platform. The gene from adenovirus, which causes the infection, is removed while a gene with the code of a protein from another virus spike is inserted.
Statement 3 is correct: Covaxin is an inactivated viral vaccine. It is developed with Whole-Virion Inactivated Vero Cell-derived technology. That is, it contains inactivated viruses that cannot infect a person, but still can teach the immune system to prepare a defence mechanism against the active virus.
