CEO of COVID-19 vaccine development center fired for corruption

Rospotrebnadzor fired Rinat Maksyutov, general director of the Vector State Scientific Center for Virology and Biotechnology, due to “loss of trust”. The order was signed by the head of the department, Anna Popova.

It is said that Maksyutov did not take action “to resolve the conflict of interest” and also violated the law “On Combating Corruption”.

The 41-year-old Maksyutov is a doctor of biological sciences, author and co-author of over 70 scientific papers. Among other things, he participated in the development of the EpiVacCorona vaccine against COVID-19, which was registered by the Ministry of Health without conducting clinical trials on its effectiveness. The scientist worked at the center for 20 years, and in September 2016 he became the general director.

The real reason for Maksyutov’s dismissal is related to his mistress, who holds a high position in Vector, but does not fulfill her duties, Baza claims. The center’s staff complained to Rospotrebnadzor that the woman “stays at the center only when she deems it appropriate.”

Anatolij Altsztajn, professor at the National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology named after Gamaley, called Maksyutov a good specialist. He admitted that his dismissal was related to development EpicVakKorona, for which 3.5 billion rubles were spent. “He was a good researcher. He had excellent work on the smallpox group of viruses, the man was skilled. <...> I think the creator of this vaccine let him down. His guilt here is also obvious,” he said. Altstein.

Previously, the Gamaleya center predicted an increase in the death rate of the Russian population from COVID-19 due to the ineffectiveness of EpiVacCorona. According to experts, after testing this drug, false conclusions were published, and third-party researchers proved its uselessness.

People vaccinated with EpiVacCorona did not have antibodies to the coronavirus, Novaya Gazeta wrote. After conducting research, Meduza concluded that EpiVacCorona is a “dangerous teat” that gives the vaccinated a sense of security, although in fact it does not provide any immunity.

Rospotrebnadzor explained the lack of antibodies by the peculiarities of the composition of the vaccine and the lack of tests with sufficient “sensitivity” to detect them.

The head of Vector’s press service, Nikita Kanshin, said that the dismissal will not affect the activities of the center, which will continue to “fulfill its responsibilities in the study of dangerous viruses and the development of preventive and diagnostic drugs.”

The Novosibirsk Scientific Center “Vector”, founded in 1974, is one of the largest virological and biotechnological complexes in Russia. It contains a unique collection of microorganism cultures, in particular, it is one of the two places in the world where the smallpox virus is stored. The center has developed, among others, the Ebola vaccine and HIV diagnostic kits.