The developers of Russia’s Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine have developed a modified version of the jab for the highly contagious Delta variant, Interfax reported Thursday.
“The vaccine design is already in the refrigerator,” Alexander Gintsburg, head of the state-run Gamaleya Institute that developed Sputnik V, told Interfax.
Gintsburg noted however that it's too early to judge the modified vaccine’s effectiveness.
“Everyone has started to make a vaccine based on the Delta strain's sequence, but whether it will be better than already existing vaccines against the Delta strain, no one can say,” Gintsburg said.
Health Minister Mikhail Murashko has said that the original Sputnik V vaccine is 83% effective against the Delta variant.
