"Very similar to" Sputnik V ": what is known about the Chinese vaccine, which is planned to be registered in Russia

In Russia, the first foreign vaccine against COVID-19 may soon be registered.

It is expected to be a Chinese one-component drug, Ad5-nCov ("Convidecia").

As RT was told in the press service of the Petrovax company, which will produce the vaccine, cooperation with CanSino Biologics Inc., one of the leading immunobiological companies in China, began in 2020 with the discussion of joint projects to develop and launch vaccines for prevention on international markets. socially significant infections, including coronavirus.

In 2020, the Petrovax company received permission from the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation to conduct two clinical trials (local and international) of the third phase on the territory of Russia.

• RIA News

• © Alexey Maishev

As RT was told in the press service of Petrovax, Konvidetsiya and the second component Sputnik V essentially have the same platform - the human adenoviral vector of the fifth type.

“Currently, the vaccine is in the process of state registration, the documents were submitted to the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation in November 2020, the decision is expected this year.

At the moment, "Konvidetsia" is already registered in China, Hungary, Pakistan, Mexico and Kyrgyzstan.

After the vaccine is registered in the Russian Federation, Petrovax plans to produce the drug at its own production facility in the Moscow Region and export it, ”the press service of Petrovax said.

The vaccine has successfully passed preclinical and three phases of clinical trials.

The results of the Phase I and II studies on immunogenicity and safety have been published in the medical scientific peer-reviewed journal The Lancet.

Interim results from a local Phase III clinical trial involving 500 volunteers showed a high safety and efficacy profile for the Ad5-nCov vaccine: 92.5% of the volunteers developed high titers of antibodies to COVID-19.

The company noted that no serious adverse reactions were recorded during the tests.

As part of the local study, the observation of the volunteers has been completed.

The final test results will be received in August 2021.

The final results of the 12-month follow-up of volunteers are expected in the first half of 2022.

In accordance with the protocol, all volunteers who have previously taken part in an international clinical trial (in Russia - more than 5 thousand volunteers, in total in the world - more than 44 thousand) and have not been vaccinated with other drugs will be offered to participate in the next stage of the clinical trial.

“Volunteers who have provided informed consent and who meet the eligibility criteria will receive a second dose of Convidia vaccine.

This dose will be the first dose of the vaccine for patients who received placebo at the first stage and the second dose for patients who received the vaccine, ”Petrovax explained.

In turn, Doctor of Medicine, immunologist Vladislav Zhemchugov believes that Convidetsia will be able to enter the Russian market thanks to an intergovernmental agreement and the similarity of Chinese and Russian vaccines.

“Ours have been exchanging with the Chinese for a long time in the field of biotechnology and pharmaceuticals.

The vaccine is very similar to Sputnik V because it has the same platform, that is, it is a vector vaccine.

She completed the third phase of clinical trials with human participation, very successful, effective and safe because no side effects have been identified.

Probably, they decided that it was worth producing it as a backup, ”Zhemchugov said. 

"Convision" can also be used in the form of inhalation, for example, a nasal spray. 

Speaking about other foreign vaccines that can enter the Russian market, Zhemchugov stressed that all drugs should be freely available.

This should be ensured by the World Health Organization (WHO). 

“Since a pandemic is a supranational process, vaccination should also be carried out.

Regardless of the level of income of countries, their ability to produce.

Regardless of social factors, everyone should have an equal opportunity.

Because the pandemic will not end until everyone is vaccinated in the planetary immune layer, ”the expert said.

In turn, the head of the laboratory of the Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the University of Rutters (USA), Konstantin Severinov, told RT that the Chinese vaccine "Convidecia" is in demand in a number of other countries. 

• RIA News

• © Vitaly Belousov

“This is the first foreign vaccine that has passed the third phase of clinical trials in our country, as well as in several other countries, such as Argentina, Chile, Mexico and Pakistan.

It has shown acceptable efficacy, that is, the ability to prevent severe infections or just a disease, however, lower than that of RNA vaccines.

In fact, this vaccine is identical to the second component of Sputnik and is very close to other vector vaccines, "Severinov told RT.

According to him, this fact will make it possible to use "Convision" in combination with "Sputnik Light".

“The advantage of Convidia is that it is a one-component vaccine. In the case of clinical studies of the nasal inhalation form of the first and second phases, it has been shown that using two inhalations in the nose is equivalent in terms of the immune response to simply injecting this vaccine. The results of the third phase of clinical trials of this type of vaccine have not yet been published, "Severinov told RT.