CSIR-CCMB, CSIR-IICT collaborating on indigenous mRNA vaccine for COVID-19

CISR-Centre for Cellular & Molecular Biology (CCMB) is working in collaboration with CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) and others on developing an indigenous mRNA vaccine. “I

CISR-Centre for Cellular & Molecular Biology (CCMB) is working in collaboration with CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) and others on developing an indigenous mRNA vaccine. “It is going to take a while with rigorous development and testing before it can be brought out in the form of an injectable vaccine”, said its director Vinay Kumar Nandicoori.

“This has been started by my predecessor Rakesh Mishra and we are continuing the process, doing analyses, testing out multiple steps in the last few months like making the RNA, and packaging into lipid particles etc,” he explained. The director pointed out that although the mRNA vaccine making is not novel because two mRNA vaccines are already in use across the world to tackle the COVID pandemic —Moderna and Pfizer — it will nevertheless requires quite lot of work as the process has not been obtained from any company.