Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines division of Sanofi , announced the launch of Shan5, its paediatric pentavalent vaccine developed and manufactured by its affiliate Shantha in India.

The launch of Shan5 vaccine received prequalification status from the World Health Organization (WHO) in April 2014.Shan5’s prequalification gives many more children in India access to the latest high-quality, fully-liquid, 5-in-1 vaccine. Further, the prequalification helps Shan5 secure the supply of pentavalent combination vaccines in over 50 emerging and low-income countries.  It adds to the existing list of four vaccines that Shantha manufactures, including Shanchol–the innovative cholera vaccine.“A significant number of babies born every year in India do not have access to modern vaccination programmes.

The launch of Shan5 in India means that 27 million babies born annually in India will have access to vaccination, to protect them from 5 potentially deadly diseases. By launching Shan5, Shantha will be contributing to filling this immunization gap for the benefit of babies and their parents", said Dr.Harish Iyer, CEO-Shantha.

As the first doses are being made available,the Company has different  plans to respond to different needs: public vaccination programs and vaccination in the private practice.

Shan5 is a fully-liquid five-in-one, convenient, safe and high-quality vaccine that provides effective protection for children from 6 weeks of age against five diseases: diphtheria, tetanus,pertussis, Hib and hepatitis B. Shan5 vaccine has been developed and is produced by Shantha in Hyderabad, India.

Shantha, which was acquired by Sanofi Pasteur Holding in 2009, is a biotechnology pioneer from the emerging countries, founded by Dr. K I Varaprasad Reddy in 1993 in Hyderabad, India. Shantha is a fully integrated biotechnology company involved in R&D, manufacturing and marketing.

Shantha’s mission is to develop, produce and market human health care products that are  affordable and meet the highest International standards. Shantha’s products complement Sanofi Pasteur’s portfolio. Four of its licensed vaccines are WHO-prequalified: Shan5 paediatric vaccine, Shanchol cholera vaccine, Shanvac-B hepatitis B vaccine, and ShanTT tetanus vaccine.

Sanofi Pasteur and Shantha are also developing a new pediatric combination vaccine based on Shan5 that will incorporate Sanofi Pasteur’s Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV) in order to secure polio eradication.