Cuba began industrial production of the Abdala COVID-19 vaccine candidate to ensure the doses required in the third phase of clinical trials, Cubadebate reported.
The president of BioCubaFarma, Eduardo Martínez, announced this Wednesday on his Twitter account the start of the manufacturing at Aica laboratories of a batch of the vaccine.
Otro de nuestros candidatos vacunales, #Abdala, también comenzó el proceso de fabricación industrial. En este momento @AicaLaboratorio, se encuetra produciendo los lotes de vacunas que se utilizarán en los Estudios Clínicos Fase III. #CubaViva pic.twitter.com/cVckDPgWRV
— Eduardo Martínez Díaz (@EdMartDiaz) February 24, 2021
Developed by the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB), Abdala has demonstrated safety and immunogenicity against coronavirus in the second phase of clinical studies.
For their part, officials of the Cuban biopharmaceutical industry explained that their plants have enough capacity to produce more than 100,000 bulbs per day of the vaccine candidate, at a rate of 12,000 doses per hour, according to the source.
Authorities from the BioCubaFarma business group and the Finlay Vaccine Institute (IFV) confirmed this weekend the large-scale production of Soberana 02, at the National Center for Biopreparations (BIOCEN).
The third phase of clinical trials with this formulation developed by the Finlay Institute will begin in March in Havana.
Third phase of trials of Soberana 02 vaccine to start in March in Havana
The director general of the IFV, Dr. Vicente Vérez, affirmed yesterday that this vaccine candidate has demonstrated a “high degree of safety and reliability” in the preceding trials, Tribuna de La Habana reported.
Cuba intends to immunize its entire population this year, which is why it advances in the development of four vaccine candidates in unison; in addition to Soberana 02 and Abdala, the island’s scientists continue the studies of the Soberana 01 and Mambisa candidates.
