The recent outbreak of the coronavirus has interested many peoples for the scientific know-how of vaccine manufacturing and production. The main purpose of vaccines is to generate antigens against the respective viruses and to enhance the immune response of the body in fighting against them. There are several vaccines available in the market for a variety of viral and infectious diseases. A lot of scientific parameters are necessary to be followed in the process of manufacturing vaccines. It starts with the study of the nature of viruses and goes through various clinical trials and errors in order to make it as effective and safe as possible.
Ingredients in a vaccine:
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Antigen
According to the information available on the WHO website, the key ingredient that goes into the manufacturing of any vaccines is an antigen. An antigen is either the small part of the disease-causing virus or even the whole organism but in weakened or altered form to make the body learn about the nature of the virus. This antigen can be anything like in the form of sugar or protein. The selection of antigen forms the most important part of the manufacturing processes as it includes genomics or genome sequencing to find the most appropriate and effective genes that can be used as antigens.
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Adaptations of Right Platform
Now the next step in vaccine production is about the adaptation of the right platforms. This primarily means employing different methods like modification around genes or inducing genetic engineering in the structure of DNA or RNA to produce desired antigens inside the body.
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Preservatives
The other important component is the preservative that maintains the quality of vaccines, and prevents vaccines from contaminations. The most common and widely used preservative is 2-phenoxyethanol.
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Stabilizers and Surfactants
Stabilizers prevent chemical reactions from occurring within the vaccine. It can be sugars (lactose, sucrose), amino acids (glycine), gelatin, and proteins (recombinant human albumin, derived from yeast). And the function of Surfactant is to keep all ingredients in the vaccines blended together and prevent the originality of vaccines.
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Residuals
Residuals also form an important ingredient of vaccine manufacturing and depend on the processes that are utilized for manufacturing. Egg proteins, yeast, or antibiotics are some examples of residuals.
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Diluent
The primary use of diluent is to maintain the appropriate liquid concentration of vaccines. The most commonly used diluent is sterile water.
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Adjuvant
The adjuvants are used to improve the immune response to vaccines. For any antigen that induces a weak response, adjuvants are added to enhance their efficacy and quality. It is also used to overcome the limitations in vaccine productions by lowering the doses required for vaccinations. Aluminum salts (like aluminum phosphate, aluminum hydroxide or potassium aluminum sulfate) are commonly used adjuvants that are not harmful to the human body.
You can search for vaccine slot availability on the ‘Vaccine Slot Finder’ on the OneDios app. It allows you to have a streamlined and uncomplicated experience while searching for your vaccine slot. You have to simply enter your Pincode to get the relevant information about slot availability. OneDios COVID 19 Vaccine Slot Finder empowers you to efficiently check available vaccine slots in your area by making the process easygoing, painless, and reliable.
You can also track vaccine-related statistics on the “Vaccination Dashboard” available on the OneDios app. The data for the dashboard is sourced from official Co-Win Statistics. Through this dashboard, you can stay informed about the number of sites conducting vaccination and total vaccination doses in real-time. Relevant data and trends are presented in user-friendly graphs, categories, and visual formats for greater access. You can also check updated data by selecting your state or district to know about specific statistics.