Single dose Sputnik Light shows 93.5% efficacy against Covid, claims RDIF

Sputnik Light tested on 320,000 subjects; no jab-related deaths; no cerebral vein thrombosis and no Guillain-Barre syndrome

Sputnik Light, the single dose version of the Russian Covid-19 vaccine Sputnik V, has shown 93.5 per cent efficacy, claimed the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) on Wednesday. The data is from Paraguay’s Ministry of Health.

Sputnik Light was tested on 320,000 subjects who received the vaccine based on data collected by July 30, 2021.

The data also indicates a high safety profile of Sputnik Light with no serious adverse events associated with vaccination; no deaths related to the vaccination; no cerebral vein thrombosis (CVT) cases after vaccination; no Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) cases after vaccination; no capillary leak syndrome cases after vaccination; and no cases of myocarditis or pericarditis reported, claimed RDIF in a statement.

Sputnik V is a heterogeneous vaccine which uses two different vectors Ad26 and Ad5 in its two doses. Sputnik Light is the first dose component of this vaccine.

“With this approach proving successful in creating a longer and more durable immunity against the coronavirus, RDIF took the lead in initiating partnerships with other vaccine producers to conduct joint studies of a combination of the first component of Sputnik V with foreign vaccines,” RDIF said in a statement.

In particular, initial safety results of the world’s first study of a combination between Sputnik Light and the AstraZeneca vaccine in Azerbaijan demonstrates a high safety profile for the combined use of the vaccines with no serious adverse events or cases of coronavirus after vaccination, the RDIF claimed.

Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund said: "The one-shot Sputnik Light vaccine enables authorities of Paraguay to speed up the vaccination of the population and accelerate the creation of herd immunity. As demonstrated by data from the Ministry of Health of Paraguay, as well as and a number of other countries around the world, Sputnik Light has a high safety profile and one of the best efficacy numbers as compared to many two-shot vaccines.”

In India the RDIF has tied up to manufacture 1.7 bn doses of Sputnik V vaccine. Around 250 mn doses are for India. If Sputnik Light is approved in India, then the potential number of people covered by the vaccine would double.