It is the news that many feared: the first data show that the Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine can provide only “minimal protection” against mild to moderate diseases caused by the coronavirus variant first identified in South Africa.
A study released on Sunday by a South African university suggested that two doses of the Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine provided “substantially reduced” protection against mild to moderate Covid-19 disease from the new virus variant first identified, known as B. 1,351.
South Africa said it is halting the launch of the Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine after the study was launched.
But that does not mean that governments should throw away their AstraZeneca stocks. Experts say it is possible – and very likely – that the injection is still effective in preventing serious illness and death.
The news may, however, be a major obstacle to getting out of the pandemic world, which cannot “end” until the virus stops circulating widely.
This is because the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is cheaper and easier to transport and store than some of the other vaccines approved for use so far and, as such, would have a key role in fighting the pandemic in low and middle income countries. If the vaccine is not effective enough against the new variant, it could deepen the already huge vaccination gap between the world’s richest and poorest countries.
Less effective vaccines can force countries where new variants become dominant to change their vaccination strategy. Instead of trying to get collective immunity, the focus may be on preventing as many deaths as possible, even while the virus continues to circulate.
And while South Africa’s data is undoubtedly a setback for vaccination campaigns, scientists are already working on updating existing vaccines to make them more effective against new variants.
On Saturday, AstraZeneca said it is working with the University of Oxford to adapt the vaccine against variant B.1.351 and that it will lead to clinical development to make it “ready for delivery in the fall, if necessary”.
Last month, Pfizer said it was “laying the groundwork” to create a vaccine booster that could respond to coronavirus variants.
“We see this all the time with the flu vaccine,” said Dr. Julian Tang, an honorary associate professor and clinical virologist at the University of Leicester. Influenza vaccines are adapted each year to target the strains of viruses that most circulate. Sometimes, the vaccine chosen does not match the strain that becomes prevalent.
“Incompatible vaccine seasons allow for more influenza infections, morbidity and mortality – but to some extent this is inevitable, as the virus will always be mutated first – so we will have to adjust our vaccines to match the new virus,” added Tang . .
UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Monday that the flu plan could work for the coronavirus in the future.
“The jab is updated every year according to the mutations and variations that happened and were detected in the previous months, and that it is manufactured during the summer, and then delivered into the arms of those who are most vulnerable to the flu in the fall,” he said.
When it comes to Covid-19, he explained that we need to think about how to protect people in a similar way.
The good news is that developing a vaccine that works against the new variants does not mean starting from scratch, so updates may be available soon.
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