Noora (vaccine)

Noora (vaccine)
Vaccine description
TargetSARS-CoV-2
Vaccine typeProtein subunit
Clinical data
Routes of
administration
Intramuscular
Identifiers
CAS Number

Noora (Persian: نورا) is a COVID-19 vaccine candidate developed by Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences in collaboration with Plasma Darman Sarv Sepid Co. (lit. White Cypress Plasma Treatment) in Iran.[1][2] Introduced in June 2021,[3] it was announced as having "successfully passed the first phase of its clinical trial" two months later.[4]

The clinical trial reported in the Journal of Medical Virology met a critical scrutiny in May 2023, after which the journal declared it as an invalid study and retracted it in March 2024.[5][6][7] Independent research in 2024 indicated that the vaccine is very weak (poor immunogenicity and neutralization efficacy) unlikely useful for the later variants of SARS-CoV-2.[8][9]

  1. ^ "IRGC starts clinical trial of "Noora" coronavirus vaccine". Tehran Times. 27 June 2021. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
  2. ^ "IRGC Commander: Iran-Made 'Noora' Coronavirus Vaccine Ready for 2nd Stage of Human Trial". Fars News Agency. 22 August 2021. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  3. ^ Hashemi S (27 June 2021). "Iran unveils Covid-19 vaccine "Noora"". Iranian Students' News Agency. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
  4. ^ Rahmani T (11 August 2021). "Termination of 1st phase of "Noora" vaccine clinical trial". Mehr News Agency. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
  5. ^ Joelving F (7 March 2024). "Iran COVID-vaccine paper with 'serious flaws' retracted". Retraction Watch. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
  6. ^ "Retraction: "Safety and immunogenicity of a recombinant receptor-binding domain-based protein subunit vaccine (Noora vaccine) against COVID-19 in adults: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, Phase 1 trial"". Journal of Medical Virology. 96 (3): e29509. March 2024. doi:10.1002/jmv.29509. PMC 11062063. PMID 38430205.
  7. ^ "Iran Covid Vaccine Report now Retracted by Journal". Iran Times. 10 May 2024. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
  8. ^ Dashti N, Golsaz-Shirazi F, Jeddi-Tehrani M, Zarnani AH, Amiri MM, Shokri F (March 2024). "Comparative Immunogenicity and Neutralization Potency of Four Approved COVID-19 Vaccines in BALB/c Mice". Iranian Journal of Immunology. 21 (1): 1–14. doi:10.22034/iji.2024.101060.2728. PMID 38433582.
  9. ^ Daungsupawong H, Wiwanitkit V (May 2024). "Letter to the Editor Regarding "Comparative Immunogenicity and Neutralization Potency of Four Approved COVID-19 Vaccines in BALB/c Mice"". Iranian Journal of Immunology. 21 (2): 184–185. doi:10.22034/iji.2024.101947.2764. PMID 38803238.