<p>Bharat Biotech has applied to conduct trials in Bangladesh for its coronavirus vaccine recently approved for emergency use at home, a senior official at Bangladesh's main medical research body told <em>Reuters</em>.</p>.<p>If allowed to go ahead, this would be the first trial of any coronavirus vaccine in Bangladesh and could give the densely-populated country of more than 160 million faster access to the shot for mass use.</p>.<p>The vaccine, developed with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), was given the green light for restricted use in India this month without any efficacy data.</p>.<p>"We have received their proposal. The committee will review it," Mahmood-uz-Jahan, a director at the state-run Bangladesh Medical Research Council, told Reuters, declining to give details.</p>.<p>The Dhaka-based International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B), has applied to run the trial on behalf of Bharat Biotech, said a source with direct knowledge of the matter who declined to be named citing internal rules.</p>.<p><strong><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/coronavirus-has-killed-more-americans-than-world-war-ii-johns-hopkins-tracker-941505.html">Read | Coronavirus has killed more Americans than World War II: Johns Hopkins tracker</a></strong></p>.<p>ICDDR,B declined to comment. Spokespeople for Bharat Biotech had no immediate comment.</p>.<p>Sinovac Biotech's late-stage trial of a potential vaccine in Bangladesh has become uncertain after Dhaka refused to meet the Chinese company’s demand for co-funding.</p>.<p>Bharat Biotech started a late-stage trial for Covaxin at home in November and a top Indian government vaccine official, Vinod Kumar Paul, has told Reuters that a smaller study involving 1,000-2,000 people could also be done in Bangladesh.</p>.<p>Bangladesh will from Thursday start receiving millions of India-made doses of another vaccine licensed from Oxford University and AstraZeneca. It is being mass-produced by the Serum Institute of India, the world's largest vaccine maker.</p>.<p>Bangladesh, however, has no immediate plans to buy Covaxin whose efficacy data from the late India trial are expected by March.</p>.<p>"Our vaccine procurement is in good shape. We are going to start the vaccination in the first week of February," Bangladesh Health Secretary Abdul Mannan told Reuters.</p>.<p>"No plan to buy from Bharat Biotech at present."</p>.<p>Brazil is the only country that has publicly announced plans to buy Covaxin doses from India.</p>
<p>Bharat Biotech has applied to conduct trials in Bangladesh for its coronavirus vaccine recently approved for emergency use at home, a senior official at Bangladesh's main medical research body told <em>Reuters</em>.</p>.<p>If allowed to go ahead, this would be the first trial of any coronavirus vaccine in Bangladesh and could give the densely-populated country of more than 160 million faster access to the shot for mass use.</p>.<p>The vaccine, developed with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), was given the green light for restricted use in India this month without any efficacy data.</p>.<p>"We have received their proposal. The committee will review it," Mahmood-uz-Jahan, a director at the state-run Bangladesh Medical Research Council, told Reuters, declining to give details.</p>.<p>The Dhaka-based International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B), has applied to run the trial on behalf of Bharat Biotech, said a source with direct knowledge of the matter who declined to be named citing internal rules.</p>.<p><strong><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/coronavirus-has-killed-more-americans-than-world-war-ii-johns-hopkins-tracker-941505.html">Read | Coronavirus has killed more Americans than World War II: Johns Hopkins tracker</a></strong></p>.<p>ICDDR,B declined to comment. Spokespeople for Bharat Biotech had no immediate comment.</p>.<p>Sinovac Biotech's late-stage trial of a potential vaccine in Bangladesh has become uncertain after Dhaka refused to meet the Chinese company’s demand for co-funding.</p>.<p>Bharat Biotech started a late-stage trial for Covaxin at home in November and a top Indian government vaccine official, Vinod Kumar Paul, has told Reuters that a smaller study involving 1,000-2,000 people could also be done in Bangladesh.</p>.<p>Bangladesh will from Thursday start receiving millions of India-made doses of another vaccine licensed from Oxford University and AstraZeneca. It is being mass-produced by the Serum Institute of India, the world's largest vaccine maker.</p>.<p>Bangladesh, however, has no immediate plans to buy Covaxin whose efficacy data from the late India trial are expected by March.</p>.<p>"Our vaccine procurement is in good shape. We are going to start the vaccination in the first week of February," Bangladesh Health Secretary Abdul Mannan told Reuters.</p>.<p>"No plan to buy from Bharat Biotech at present."</p>.<p>Brazil is the only country that has publicly announced plans to buy Covaxin doses from India.</p>