On 31 December, the GDR announced that the first fourth-valor papillomavirus vaccine in the country, developed jointly and autonomously by the Chengdu Institute of Biological Products of the National Pharmaceutical Corporation of China and the China Institute of Biological Research (National Centre for Research on New Vaccines) had been issued with a batch certificate for biological products issued by the National Drug Control Agency and sold on the same day. The vaccine is prepared using yeast expression systems consistent with the international mainstream and covers HPV6, 11, 16 and 18 subtypes, which apply to women aged 18 to 45. The vaccine III clinical test data show 100 per cent protection against pre-cancer diseases at cervical CIN2 and above. As the country ' s first 4-cost HPV vaccine, it will provide women of appropriate age with more economical vaccination options against related diseases caused by the human papilloma virus, especially cervical cancer. Xinhua