Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, speaks during a press conference at the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington on Thursday, January 21, 2021.
Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Current Covid-19 vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna can easily be adapted to target new strains of the virus, something manufacturers are already working on, White House health consultant Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Wednesday.
New strains of the coronavirus have emerged in the UK, South Africa and Brazil, which has given scientists cause for concern. While it’s no surprise that the virus is mutating, researchers are quickly trying to determine what the changes could mean for newly developed life-saving vaccines and treatments against the disease.
Some previous findings published on the prepress server bioRxiv, which have not yet been peer-reviewed, indicate that the variant identified in South Africa, which scientists are calling strain B.1.351, may escape the antibodies provided by some treatments of coronavirus and may reduce the effectiveness of the current line of vaccines available. Fauci told CNN in an interview that it was very similar to the new strain found in Brazil.
However, there is some good news: the newly developed mRNA technology used to make Pfizer and Moderna vaccines makes it easier to adapt to new strains, said Fauci. He added that pharmaceutical companies are already working to make so-called “booster” injections that will target the variant found in South Africa, which appears to be more problematic than the others.
“We are already trying to stay a step or two ahead of the game so that if, in fact, we have a situation where the South African strain is prevalent here – it is here, but it is certainly not dominant – you really want to get ahead from a protection standpoint, “said Fauci. “You will want a vaccine that specifically addresses this strain.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said federal agencies would collaborate to study the effectiveness of Covid-19 vaccines against mutant strains of the virus. While those authorized remain highly effective against the B.1.1.7 strain first identified in the UK, “things get a little more problematic” with the B.1.351 strain.
Still, both vaccines have proven to be about 95% effective in preventing Covid-19 in clinical trials, allowing a little protection where the vaccines will still work, even if either variant reduces their effectiveness, said the infectious disease specialist. . .
Testing the effectiveness of booster vaccines does not require starting from scratch, said Fauci. Booster injections will not need to undergo the same large-scale clinical tests that were required for the original vaccines to receive the Food and Drug Administration’s emergency use authorization in December, he said, adding that they could pass a “phase test” a “quick.
“You don’t have to make a trial of 30,000 people or 40,000 people,” said Fauci. “You work with the FDA and you can connect information from one trial to another. The bottom line is that we are already working on it.”
Moderna announced on Monday that its Covid-19 vaccine may be less effective against strain B.1.351 in South Africa, and that the company is stepping up work on a booster injection to protect against this variant “just in case. “.
Pfizer said on Tuesday that the company, along with German pharmaceutical company BioNTech, would also develop a booster injection, according to a Reuters report. A company spokesman was not immediately available to respond to Fauci’s comments.