India's drug regulator has given approval to three domestic biotech firms to start tests and analyses to develop a vaccine for swine flu, or the H1N1 virus.
Bharat Biotech, Panacea Biotech and Serum Institute will now be able to procure seed strains from labs in the US and UK to manufacture the vaccine. The domestic companies are expected to take at least six months before they apply for an approval for the next stage of trials. Once the companies submit their preliminary test and analysis data, they will have to apply for potency test, pre-clinical trials and finally clinical trials before launching the medicine in the market. But it is believed that by September, global companies might be able to roll out a vaccine in the country.
