Author: Biotech Express

The EU drug regulator advised on Thursday listing blood clots in the brain as a rare side effect of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 after observing cases that were not linked to a low platelet count. “Events of cerebrovascular venous and sinus thrombosis (CVST) without thrombocytopenia have been observed very rarely following vaccination with Vaxzevria,” an update read. The European Medicines Agency said 458 cases of vaccinated people developing a stroke followed by a brain bleed were observed up to September 30. The majority of cases occurred within the first four weeks of vaccination. Some cases had a fatal outcome. The agency said…

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh today informed that one lakh Genome and DNA sequencing has been done for COVID-19 so far by the Department of Bio-Technology (DBT) and 5 COVID19 Biorepositories with 57,000 samples were made available to academia and industry for R&D and Product development. The Minister was presiding over a high level meeting to review the current status of COVID-19 research, development of vaccines and other protocols as well as the contribution made in…

Seven days after the hunger strike by Deepa P Mohanan, the Dalit scholar at Mahatma Gandhi University, Nandakumar Kalarickal, who served as the director of the International and Inter University Centre for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (IIUCNN), has been removed from the centre. A notice issued by the MG University Vice Chancellor Sabu Thomas mentioned that the post will be taken over by the Vice Chancellor himself. However, Deepa has questioned why the University order does not mention Nandkumar’s removal explicitly, and simply mentions that the VC will take over responsibilities. Deepa P Mohanan is 36-year-old scholar from MGU, who is…

As per recent report by the wire, In 2020, when COVID-19 halted trade and ravaged businesses across the country, as many as 11,716 businesspersons died by suicide. The latest ‘Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India’ report said that of these over 11,000 deaths, suicides among “tradesmen” increased by 50% – from 2,906 in 2019 to 4,356 in 2020 – the highest across categories of business community. As many as 4,226 “vendors” died by suicide last year, with the rest being accounted for in the category of “other businesses”. The Print also, however, pointed out that the number of death by suicides…

Not in mainstream media but many websites are reporting that Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla was arrested by FBI today Friday Morning after fake vaccine trial controversy erupted. Recently, an article published in The British Medical Journal by journalist Paul D Thacker raises questions about data integrity, regulatory oversight and patient safety, citing activities at a company that carried out trials for Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccines. According to the article, “A regional director who was employed at the research organisation Ventavia Research Group has told The BMJ that the company falsified data, unblinded patients, employed inadequately trained vaccinators, and was slow to…

The US federal government has canceled a multimillion dollar deal with Emergent BioSolutions, a Maryland-based vaccine manufacturer with facilities in Baltimore that were found to have produced millions of contaminated Johnson & Johnson vaccine doses this spring, the Washington Post reported. Emergent said it will forgo about $180 million due to the contract’s termination, according to the Post. Emergent BioSolutions played a role in the Trump administration’s effort to speed up vaccine development and distribution. But after winning a contract from the previous administration, Emergent quickly ran into production problems. In March, ingredients intended for use in producing the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine shots…

Molnupiravir, developed by the US drug companies Merck, Sharp and Dohme (MSD) and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, is the first antiviral medication for Covid which can be taken as a pill rather than injected or given intravenously. The UK has agreed to purchase 480,000 courses with the first deliveries expected in November. Initially it will be given to both vaccinated and unvaccinated patients through a national study, with extra data on its effectiveness collected before any decision to order more. The drug needs to be given within five days of symptoms developing to be most effective. It’s not immediately clear how it…

The World Health Organization on Wednesday granted Covaxin an emergency use listing, or EUL, which means the ‘made-in-India’ vaccine will finally be recognised by other countries and Indians who received the shot need not self-quarantine or face restrictions when travelling abroad. Covaxin is the only vaccine which has shown best results against COVID-19 particularly delta variant in pioneer studies but it had to wait for a long time because of political turmoil that move around western countries. US, European and even Chinese vaccines were given approval as soon they submitted data but Bharat Biotech was enquired several times on small points even…

Revelations of poor practices at a contract research company helping to carry out Pfizer’s pivotal covid-19 vaccine trial raise questions about data integrity and regulatory oversight. Paul D Thacker reports in BMJ. For researchers who were testing Pfizer’s vaccine at several sites in Texas during that autumn, speed may have come at the cost of data integrity and patient safety. A regional director who was employed at the research organisation Ventavia Research Group has told The BMJ that the company falsified data, unblinded patients, employed inadequately trained vaccinators, and was slow to follow up on adverse events reported in Pfizer’s pivotal…

The Government of Meghalaya and the World Bank recently signed a $40 million health project for the state of Meghalaya. The project will improve the quality of health services and strengthen the state’s capacity to handle future health emergencies, including the COVID-19 pandemic. The Meghalaya Health Systems Strengthening Project will enhance the management and governance capabilities of the state and its health facilities; expand the design and coverage of the state’s health insurance program; improve the quality of health services through certification and better human resource systems, and enable efficient access to medicines and diagnostics. All 11 districts of the…