Brazil company requests emergency use approval for Russian vaccine

Brazilian pharmaceutical company União Química said on Friday that, together with the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), it has requested regulatory approval for emergency use of Russia's COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V.

The request, filed with Brazilian health regulator Anvisa, seeks approval for the use of 10 million doses of Sputnik V in Brazil in the first quarter of 2021, the company said in a statement issued in Moscow. Anvisa officials said the Russian vaccine would have to be submitted to Phase III clinical trials in Brazil before its use can be authorized.