On August 30, according to a press release, the entity reported that the Committee for New Molecules issued its favorable opinion regarding the biological one, making it the first of Latin American origin to be evaluated by that institution.

The Cofepris issued the day before its authorization to use the biological immunogen in the country. It is an antigen made by genetic engineering with the recombinant protein of the receptor-binding domain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, he explains.

It was developed by scientists from the island’s Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology. It has an efficacy of 92.8 percent against the coronavirus, in a three-dose schedule, according to information from the institution.

In Cuba, five biological candidates have been developed against the coronavirus: Abdala, Soberana 01, Soberana 02 and Soberana Plus and Mambisa, of which Abdala, Soberana 02 and Soberana Plus have already been approved and are vaccines with which the nation has immunized more than 90 percent of its population.

These drugs are in the possession of the World Health Organization to be evaluated, in order to be included in its list of emergency use.

In relation to the authorization issued by Cofepris last October, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador commented on the existence of an agreement to purchase vaccines developed in Cuba, according to the newspaper La Jornada in its informative version.

He added this would be as part of the collaboration with the island’s government. However, nothing concrete has yet been formalized, according to official information. The approval of Cofepris is an important step in that direction.

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