BRIEF—Russia approves second COVID-19 vaccine prior to Phase III results

Russia has granted regulatory approval to a second COVID-19 vaccine, according to its register of authorized medicines.

President Vladimir Putin announced the news at a government meeting on Wednesday.

The vaccine, dubbed EpiVacCorona, was developed by the Vector Institute in Siberia, one of the largest scientific virological and biotechnological centers in Russia, and completed early-stage human trials last month.

However, results have not been published yet and a large-scale trial, Phase III, has not yet begun, according to media reports.

A vaccine developed by the Moscow’s Gamaleya Institute, called Sputnik V, was licensed for domestic use in August, again without late stage clinical trials.

It is also being assessed by several regulatory agencies in other countries, including China and India, and some South American regions.

A large-scale human trial of EpiVacCorona is likely to begin in November or December, the TASS news agency cited the consumer safety watchdog Rospotrebnadzor, which oversees the institute, as saying.