Brazil and Russia face off over vaccine contamination charge

Abstract

An international fight broke out last week when Brazilian regulators vetoed the import of the Russian COVID-19 vaccine, Sputnik V, alleging its second dose contains adenoviruses capable of replication—a potential danger to vaccine recipients. The vaccine's maker soon announced on Twitter that it would sue in Brazil for defamation. In response, officials of the Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency held a press conference displaying documentation that they said supported their claim of vaccine contamination. The furor comes as Brazil, which has one of the highest burdens of COVID-19 globally, has vaccinated only about 15% of its people and state governors there want to import 30 million Sputnik V doses.