TechInvention ties up with Korean co to bring oral cholera vaccine to India

Clinical trials of WHO pre-qualified vaccine to start soon; Unicef price is $2 per dose, private market price globally is $8-10; Initial volumes to be imported; India would need 83 mn doses a year

Biotech company TechInvention has tied up with South Korean firm Eubiologics to bring in an oral cholera vaccine to India. The vaccine doses would be imported initially.

Euvichol, the vaccine, has about 80 per cent efficacy in adults and about 89 per cent in children, TechInvention claimed. It is prequalified by the World Health Organisation (WHO). Eubiologics has so far supplied 55 million doses to UN healthcare agencies. Euvichol-Plus has been supplied to 22 countries across the globe, it added.  

TechInvention Founder and CEO Syed Ahmed said, “Earlier Shantha Biotech was manufacturing the Cholera vaccine. The company got acquired by Sanofi and the facility is under overhaul, owing to which, currently the vaccine is in short supply.” He added that there is a huge unmet need in India. As per GAVI estimates, India would require around 83 million doses a year. Oral cholera vaccine is not part of India’s National Immunisation Mission (NIM). “Oral Cholera Vaccine is not a part of NIM. However, it is required on campaign basis after natural calamities like heavy rainfall, flooding, earthquakes etc. It is recommended byIndian Academy of Pediatrics,” Ahmed explained.  

In terms of pricing, the Unicef price is about $2 per dose, but in the private market, the price ranges from $8-10. This is a single dose vaccine.  

Ahmed said TechInvention has received approval from the Drugs Controller General of India for clinical trials in India. “The sites have been finalised, and the clinical trials can start within 45-60 working days,” he claimed.

The Indian arm of the trial would be on 416 subjects.  

The licensure of Euvichol would take 8-10 months from now, and initial volumes would be imported. TechInvention, however, said that it is open to strategic partnerships in the domestic market for manufacturing. The advantage an oral cholera vaccine has over the injectable variety is the ease of handling and administration.