Russia’s one-dose ‘Sputnik Light’ vaccine will cost less than $10

Russia has authorised the use of Sputnik Light — a single-dose vaccine against the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) said:

The single-dose Sputnik Light vaccine demonstrated 79.4 per cent efficacy according to analysed data taken from 28 days after the injection was administered as part of Russia's mass vaccination programme between December 5, 2020 and April 15, 2021.

Developed by Moscow’s Gamaleya Institute, the slimmed-down vaccine is said to cost under $10 a dose. Sputnik Light is developed using the first component — recombinant human adenovirus serotype number 26 (rAd26) of Sputnik V vaccine.

The Russian authorities argued that the move could accelerate the process of achieving herd immunity against the novel coronavirus.

The statement by RDIF also added that “Sputnik Light has proven effective against all new strains of coronavirus, as demonstrated by the Gamaleya Center, during laboratory tests”. The two-dose version Sputnik V has been earlier approved for use in over 60 countries including India.

But the vaccine is yet to be approved by the European Medicines Agency or the United States Food and Drug Administration. A Phase III clinical trial involving 7,000 people is underway in Russia, the United Arab Emirates, Ghana and other countries. Besides Russia, Sputnik Light is to be made in at least 10 other countries including India, China and South Korea.

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