TEHRAN – An Iranian knowledge-based company is developing an oral vaccine against COVID-19, which will be produced by the next [Iranian calendar] year (starting March 2022), IRIB reported on Wednesday.

Next year, three vaccines, one of which is oral, will enter the clinical phase, Mostafa Ghanei, secretary of the biotechnology development office of the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology announced.

Currently, some 9 companies are developing vaccines; three are also working on developing oral, viral vector, and mRNA-based vaccines, he stated.

Some 9 companies are developing COVID-19 vaccines in Iran. A vaccine made from an inactivated virus causes the body to produce antibodies when facing the virus; there are other platforms for vaccine development, including using mRNA, DNA, or protein-based subunit vaccines.

Mass vaccination against COVID-19 started on Iranian citizens with the Russian-made Sputnik V vaccine on February 9.

While Iran continues efforts to mass-produce local candidates, over 18 million doses of foreign vaccines have already been imported and others are expected soon.

Iran is also producing vaccines jointly with two countries of Cuba and Australia, which may also be released by September.

According to the Food and Drug Administration, 14 vaccines are being domestically developed in the country which are in different study phases.

Homegrown COVIRAN vaccine 

Made by researchers at the Headquarters for Executing the Order of the Imam, COVIRAN BAREKAT was unveiled on December 29, 2020, and received the license for public use on June 14.

It proved effective against Indian strain, according to Hojjat Niki-Maleki, head of the information center of Headquarters for Executing the Order of the Imam.

Eleven countries from Asia and South America, and a European country have asked for importing COVIRAN vaccine, Hassan Jalili, the vaccine’s production manager, has said in June.

Razi Cov Pars, developed by the Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute, is the second Iranian-made vaccine that 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 nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh (he was assassinated in November 2020 near Tehran), that was unveiled and started the clinical trial on March 16.

Pastu Covac coronavirus vaccine, developed by Cuba's Finlay Vaccine Institute and Pasteur Institute of Iran, is another homegrown vaccine, which has received the emergency use license, after COVIRAN.

FB/MG