In a phase 3 trial, [b]Rotavac[/b], a rotavirus vaccine developed by an Indian company with help from an international partnership, showed about the same efficacy asexisting rotavirus vaccines, raising hope that it will offer another affordable option for developing countries. A [s]CIDRAP[/s] report says that the manufacturer, [b]Bharat Biotech[/b], has committed to making the vaccine available to the public sector at less than $1 a dose for a three-dose series. [b]Drs Shabir Madhi and Umesh Parashar[/b], who work for [b]SA’s National Health Laboratory Service[/b], write in [s]The Lancet[/s] that the vaccine's efficacy in the trial was similar to that of the two licensed rotavirus vaccines in developing countries. For example, the monovalent vaccine, [b]Rotarix[/b] (GlaxoSmithKline), had 50% efficacy in Malawi, while the pentavalent vaccine, [b]Rotateq[/b] (Merck), showed 64% efficacy in low-income African countries, they said. Although the new vaccine’s efficacy appears modest, it could yield substantial benefits, given the ‘tremendous health burden of severe rotavirus gastroenteritis in India and other low-income countries,’ according to Madhi and Parashar.
[link url=http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2014/03/phase-3-results-boost-rotavirus-vaccine-developed-india]Full CIDRAP report[/link]
[link url=http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(13)62701-4/fulltext]Full The Lancet study[/link]