Cadila Healthcare has entered into a definitive agreement with a Shilpa Medicare subsidiary for production-supply of ZyCoV-D vaccine drug substance from the latter’s integrated biologics R&D-cum-manufacturing centre in Dharwad, Karnataka.
The targeted production will be mutually agreed upon by both parties. The ZyCoV-D technology would be transferred to Shilpa Biologicals, the subsidiary, for the purpose. Cadila will be responsible for the filling, packaging, distribution and marketing of the vaccine, the company said in a filing on Friday.
ZyCoV-D is the first DNA plasmid vaccine in the world for human use, developed indigenously by Cadila against the COVID-19 virus. It is also the first COVID-19 vaccine for those the 12-18 age group, besides the adult population and is a needle-free vaccine administered using a needle free applicator, which ensures painless intradermal vaccine delivery, it said.
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In a separate filing, Shilpa Medicare said it has identified the biologics business as a strategic growth engine and made significant investments in setting up a high end, flexible biologics facility in SBPL. The Dharwad facility would cater to the requirements of the fast-growing biologics field, that include the DNA vaccine, adenoviral, subunit vaccines, monoclonal antibodies and fusion proteins.
Shilpa Medicare has already announced a collaboration with Dr. Reddy's Laboratories to produce Sputnik V, the Russian vaccine against COVID-19.