Omicron threat: Covaxin maker Bharat Biotech studying if vaccine works against variant

Bharat Biotech, the maker of India's COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin, said on Tuesday that it was studying whether the vaccine would work against Omicron variant. The development follows warning from Moderna CEO about existing vaccines potentially being less effective against Omicron which is feared to be more transmissible and dangerous than previous coronavirus variants.

"Covaxin was developed against the original Wuhan variant," a Bharat Biotech spokesperson was quoted by Reuters.

"It has shown that it can work against other variants, including the Delta variant. We continue to research on new variants."

Meanwhile, Bharat Biotech has resumed export of Covaxin. It has executed long-pending orders in November.

The company also said exports to additional countries will commence from December, according to a statement it shared on Twitter.

It was not immediately clear whether or not these exports were made under the global vaccine-sharing facility COVAX.

Covaxin, which is 78% effective against severe cases of COVID-19, was approved for emergency use listing by the World Health Organization earlier this month.

It is the only homegrown vaccine being used in India's vaccination programme, although it accounts for only about 11% of the nearly 1.23 billion doses administered so far.

(With inputs from agencies)