So far, the Cuba biotech industry has also developed other four vaccines: Sovereign 01, Sovereign 02, Sovereign Plus, and Mambisa.
July 9 (teleSUR) On Friday, Cuba’s Center for State Control of Medicines, Equipment, and Medical Devices (CECMED) granted authorization for the emergency use of the Abdala COVID-19 vaccine, which showed an efficacy rate of 92.2 percent in clinical trials.
The vaccine complied with CEMED requirements and international standards in terms of quality, safety, and efficacy, which opens the way to its massive use in Cuba and its commercialization to other nations.
Developed by Cuba’s Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB), the three-shot Abdala vaccine is given in two-week intervals and does not require extremely low temperatures. To build up the immune system, it deploys part of the SARS-CoV-2’s spike protein to help the virus enter and infect cells.
In parallel to clinical trials, Cuba’s health authorities had already administered the Abdala vaccine to thousands of people at risk areas in the country under the figure of intervention studies.
Cuba Study Group@CubaStudyGroupWe call on the #Biden administration to restore support for the Cuban people by prioritizing policies that focus on reinstating travel, reauthorizing remittances, re-opening consular services in #Havana, collaborating on COVID-19 solutions, and supporting #Cuba‘s private sector.
So far, Cuba has also developed other four COVID-19 vaccines: Sovereign 01, Sovereign 02, Sovereign Plus, and Mambisa. The latter is administered through a nasal spray.
Following the Abdala vaccine emergency use approval, CECMED is also likely to grant authorization to the Sovereign 02 vaccine, which was found to have 91.2 percent efficacy in Phase 3 of clinical trials.
The Cuban biotech industry has over 30 years of experience in vaccine development. About 80 percent of the vaccines used in the national vaccination scheme were developed on the Island. Some of them have also been used in other countries with the World Health Organization (WHO)’s approval. Such is the case of the Hepatitis B vaccine.
