The Drugs Controller General of India (DGCI) gave nod for Phase-2 and Phase-3 trails of India’s first mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine.A vaccine developed using mRNA technology is aimed at training immunity cells to fight Covid-19 using genetic instructions.

• First mRNA-based covid-19 vaccine, called HGCO19, is being developed by a Pune-based biotechnology company, Genova Biopharmaceuticals Ltd.
• The company submitted its interim clinical data for Phase I study to the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) to get the further approval.
• According to the Ministry of Science and Technology, interim Phase- I data suggests that HGCO19 vaccine is safe, tolerable, and immunogenic.

India’s first mRNA vaccine candidate, HGCO19 has been developed by Gennova Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. in collaboration with HDT Biotech Corporation of USA. Vaccine has demonstrated safety, immunogenicity, neutralization antibody activities among rodent and non-human primate models. It has successfully conducted the phase one trial and will undergo phase 2 and phase 3 trials.

m-RNA Vaccines work by training the body in order to recognise and respond to the proteins that are produced by disease-causing organisms like virus or bacteria. mRNA vaccines trick the body to produce viral proteins itself. They work by using messenger RNA (m-RNA) which is the molecule that puts DNA instructions into action. mRNA is used as a template to build protein inside a cell.

Traditional vaccines are made up of small or inactivated doses of disease-causing organism, or proteins produced by it. These inactivated organisms are introduced into the body in order to boost the immune system so that it responds against the disease-causing organisms.