A number of vaccines against diseases like TB, cholera, HIV/AIDS, cancer, rabies and leprosy are under different stages of development, though still far from commercial launch, in various institutes under the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) and Department of Biotechnology (DBT) with the assistance from the government.

According to the official information about the current status of these projects, some of them are already into the clinical trials stage while some are still in the preliminary stages of studies. Six candidates for TB vaccine have been identified and of these, Ag85 has been selected for clinical trials. Tuberculosis Research Centre is carrying out studies in this regard. Development of gp1 based vaccine using a plant virus (cardamom mosaic virus) as a nanoparticle aimed at developing novel vaccine delivery mechanisms is also being done by the institute.

In the case of cholera, National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, IMTECH at Chandigarh, IICB at Kolkata and SGPGI of Lucknow are into the research. Technology has been transferred in one case and animal toxicity studies have been launched. Phase-1 clinical trials have been completed in the case of a HIV vaccine using adeno associated virus-2 (AAV-2) as a vector at the National AIDS Research Institute, Pune, sources said. Institute of Cytology and Preventive Oncology, NOIDA has undertaken a project to develop cost effective second generation DNA based vaccine against specific HPV 16 variant having both prophylactic and therapeutic properties against cancer.

The DBT is also providing assistance through various Task Forces and the National Jai Vigyan Mission on S&T for generation of new vaccines, which are at the pre-clinical or clinical trial stages e.g. vaccines for rotavirus, cholera, typhoid, rabies, animal, human (DNA based), anthrax, malaria, dengue, tuberculosis and Japanese encephalitis. A programme called Vaccine Grand Challenge Programme is under implementation since 2008-09 to support development of vaccines with an overall objective to accelerate development of candidate vaccines such as rotavirus, cholera, typhoid, rabies, malaria, dengue, tuberculosis, for which earlier leads are available and development of novel adjuvants and novel immunogen design R&D, sources said.

Under the DBT- supported project the first combined DNA based rabies vaccine for control of rabies in dogs has been developed at Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore and after clinical trials commercially launched. Under Cholera project an oral live recombinant non-residual cholera candidate vaccine has been developed. An immuno-modulator based on killed mycobacterium was developed as an adjunct to multi drug therapy for leprosy patients.