First influenza vaccine this year
After having launched an H1N1 vaccine, the country is all set to get its first influenza vaccine in October this year.
The Drug Controller General of India, Surinder Singh, revealed that strains for the flue vaccine were being collected for a large part of 2009 from different counties across the globe.
This year, H1N1 strain is among the three strains which would be included in the flu vaccine, Mr Singh pointed out.
The manufacturers of the vaccine would be the four companies which have produced the H1N1 vaccine, including Serum Institute (Pune), Cadilla Healthcare (Ahmedabad), Bharat Biotech (Delhi) and Panaccea Biotech (Hyderabad).
While the vaccine developed by Zydus Cadilla is injectable, the one produced by Serum Institute would be in the form of a nasal drop. Mr Singh said the manufacturers can use the left over base from swine flu vaccine while making the seasonal flu vaccine.
India has already unveiled its first indigenous vaccine against H1N1 which claimed over 18,000 lives globally and more than 1,000 in the country.
Earlier, the government was importing the vaccine from the French company Sanofi Pasteurs, for health workers and other high-risk people.
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