Sputnik Light: All you need to know about Russia's new single-dose COVID-19 vaccine

In a positive development to the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic that has wreaked havoc in the world, the makers of Russia's Sputnik V Coronavirus vaccine on Thursday launched a single-dose vaccine named 'Sputnik Light'. According to the Russian Direct Investment Fund, this revolutionary single-shot vaccine is 80% effective against the virus – a figure higher than most two-shot vaccines around the globe.

The Russia-based manufacturer announced the good news on its official Twitter handle today. "Introducing a new member of the Sputnik family - a single dose Sputnik Light! It’s a revolutionary 1-shot COVID-19 vaccine with 80% efficacy - higher than many 2-shot vaccines. Sputnik Light will double vaccination rates and help to handle epidemic peaks," the tweet read.

RDIF CEO Kirill Dmitriev has invited all nations to come together and vaccinate everyone to put an end to the devastating virus. “All country should come together beyond politics, race and caste. We need to vaccinate each and everyone,” he said in a statement.

Here’s all you must know about the new Sputnik light vaccine.

• In Russia, Sputnik light will be administered to people below 60 years of age
• ‘Sputnik V’ will remain the core vaccine for all age groups in the country
• Sputnik light is more affordable and cheaper than Sputnik V
• Sputnik Light has proven effective against all new strains of coronavirus
• As many as 64 countries have already registered for Sputnik V
• RDIF has partnered with 20 producers across 10 countries that are willing to produce both the vaccines - Sputnik V and Sputnik light
• Russia is willing to continue providing these vaccines to other countries
• Both vaccines will be available for all countries as per the desired proportion

Phase 1 & 2 of the Safety and Immunogenicity Study of Sputnik Light demonstrated that:

1. Sputnik Light can elicit the development of antigen-specific IgG antibodies in 96.9% of individuals on the 28th day after vaccination;
2. The Sputnik Light vaccine elicits the development of virus-neutralizing antibodies in 91.67% of individuals on the 28th-day post-immunization;
3. Cellular immune response against the S Protein of SARS-CoV-2 develops in 100% of volunteers on the 10th day;
4. The immunization of individuals with pre-existing immunity against SARS-CoV-2 with Sputnik Light can elicit the increase of the level of antigen-specific IgG antibodies by more than 40x in 100% of subjects 10 days after immunization;
5. No serious adverse events were registered after vaccination with Sputnik Light.

Amid surging Coronavirus cases across countries, the 'Sputnik Light' vaccine will double the inoculation rates and play a massive role in tackling the pandemic peaks. The vaccine has been authorised for use in Russia.

The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed over 3.2 million lives worldwide since it first emerged in late 2019. India alone accounts for 46% of global cases and 25% of global deaths reported in the past week, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday.