Question

Identify ‘1 ’ and ‘2’ in the following diagram:
Write in brief about the production of vaccines.

Answer 1

Vaccine is the introduction of the dead of living microbe into the body for instigating the immune cells to react and produce antibodies. But raw microbe cannot be incorporated into the body, but there must be some treatment done to it to reduce its strength and make it sustainable.

Complete answer:
In the following diagram,
‘1’ is the antigen.
‘2’ is the adjuvant.
A vaccine is produced on a large scale with a lot of care because it is to be administered to both children as well as adults. It has several stages of production which it undergoes for the final development.
The first stage is Inactivation which is involved in the preparation of antigen. The microbe or the virus is made to proliferate in a primary cell such as a chicken egg. Once the microbe grows well, it may contain toxins and harmful substances.
The second stage is purification which requires the isolation or purification of the antigen. The microbe is then isolated from the cell to weaken its strength and make it inactive.
The third stage is formulation where the isolated antigen is mixed with adjuvants, stabilizers, and preservatives to form the final vaccine preparation. The role of the adjuvant is to enhance the immune response of the antigen. The stabilizers increase the storage life of the vaccine after it has been completely manufactured. The preservatives allow multiple-dose vials production if once the vial is opened and there are chances of microbial contamination.
Vaccines after completely formed need to be protected from air, water, and human contamination. Moreover, the environmental contact of the vaccine also needs to be protected due to the antigen present in mild forms which can still cause harm.

Note: Vaccines cannot provide the best protection from any infectious disease but they serve as strong deterrence factors. It takes a minimum of 12-36 months for a vaccine to develop after all the trial phases have been passed. The four phases of vaccine trial are very important to understand the potency and efficiency of the vaccine on different body types.