The first domestically produced shingles vaccine is officially launched! Applicable populations are expanded to a wider age range

On June 3, at the "Varicella-Zoster Virus Life-Cycle Prevention Strategy Academic Seminar" hosted by the China Vaccine Industry Association, Changchun Baike Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Baike Bio") announced that the attenuated live herpes zoster vaccine developed by it was officially launched on the market. It is reported that this herpes zoster vaccine is the first domestically produced herpes zoster vaccine approved for issuance, and the applicable population will be expanded to 40 years old and above, becoming the first attenuated live herpes zoster vaccine in China suitable for people aged 40 and above.

Shingles is one of the most common infectious diseases in the elderly, caused by the reactivation of the varicella-zoster virus in the body. In childhood, when the human body is infected with the varicella-zoster virus, the initial primary infection manifests as chickenpox. After the chickenpox subsides and heals, the virus will still lurk in the body. With aging or due to internal and external factors such as fatigue and trauma, the immunity decreases, and the virus will be reactivated in the body, causing shingles.

On April 10, the attenuated live zoster vaccine developed by Biotech received the "Biological Product Batch Release Certificate" approved by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA). According to public information released by the Fujian Provincial Public Resources Trading Network, the transaction price of Biotech's attenuated live zoster vaccine is 1,369 yuan per dose, and one injection can achieve herpes zoster immunity. Compared with the imported recombinant vaccine that requires two injections to achieve herpes zoster immunity, the cost is less than half.

Before this domestic vaccine was launched, there were two shingles vaccines on the market worldwide, namely Zostavax from Merck & Co., Inc., an American pharmaceutical company, and Shingrix (trade name "Shingrix") from GlaxoSmithKline, a British pharmaceutical company. Zostavax was approved for marketing by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in May 2006 and is the first attenuated live shingles vaccine routinely recommended for the elderly; Shingrix was approved for marketing by the FDA in October 2017 and is a genetically recombinant subunit vaccine suitable for people over 50 years old.

Source: Beijing Daily (ID: Beijing_Daily) Reporter Yuan Lu