Amidst fears that some of the vaccines may not be effective against new variants of coronavirus, the ICMR has said that COVAXIN is capable of neutralizing against multiple variants of SARS-CoV-2. The made-in-India vaccine effectively neutralizes the double mutant strain as well.

The study suggests that COVAXIN is effective against the UK, South African, and Brazil variants.

The ICMR, together with NIV, was successful in isolating and culturing the double mutant strain B.1.617 coronavirus identified in certain parts of India in its study.

The vaccine is manufactured by Bharat Biotech.

The news is great amidst reports that the B1.617 Indian double mutant carrying the E484Q & L452R Spike mutations being prone to immune evasion, scientist Anand Ranganathan said.