TEHRAN – The Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) started the first phase of the clinical trial of its domestically-made "Noora" coronavirus vaccine on Sunday, IRIB reported.

Produced by Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, the vaccine was unveiled in the presence of IRGC Commander-in-Chief Major General Hossein Salami and Health Minister Saeed Namaki.

The recombinant vaccine entered the stage of human trial after 16 months of research work by Iranian scientists.

The first dose of Noora vaccine was injected into the chief of Baqiyatallah Hospital Hossein Samadinia.

“It is noteworthy that a few universities in the world have been able to develop a vaccine against the virus, and it is a great honor for the Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences to be able to achieve this success,” Samadinia said on the sidelines of the unveiling ceremony.

Iran is the sixth country in the world and the first country in West Asia to gain the ability to produce the Coronavirus vaccine. Presently, there are several companies and centers researching and developing domestic vaccines. Due to the fact that two of the domestic vaccines have successfully passed the clinical, safety, and efficacy trials, voluntarily receiving injections of them has started.

Homegrown vaccines

COVIRAN BAREKAT, the first coronavirus vaccine made by researchers at the Headquarters for Executing the Order of the Imam, received the license for public use on June 14.

The vaccine was unveiled on December 29, 2020, and started to be mass-produced on March 29.

The second Iranian-made vaccine developed by the Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute (Razi Cov Pars) started the clinical trial on February 27.

Iran has also successfully completed the first phase of the human trial for Fakhra vaccine, the third domestically developed COVID-19 vaccine, named after martyred nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, that was unveiled and started the clinical trial on March 16.

“Osvid-19”, the fourth domestic vaccine produced by Osvah Pharmaceutical Company is also undergoing human trials, which will also be available in early September.

On May 24, the first coronavirus vaccine made by the private sector in Iran succeeded in receiving the code of ethics and entered the phase of clinical studies.

FB/MG