The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends the use of the coronavirus vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University even in countries where the variants threaten to reduce effectiveness.
The guidance follows news that South Africa has halted the launch of the AstraZeneca vaccine because the first findings showed a marked reduction in protection against mild to moderate disease amid a variant strain.
“Even if there is a reduction in the possibility of this vaccine having a total impact on its protection capacity, especially against serious diseases, there is no reason not to recommend its use, even in countries that already have the circulation of the variant,” said Dr. Alejandro Cravioto, president of the Strategic Advisory Group on Immunization Experts (SAGE), a panel of experts advising WHO, said during a briefing.
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The AstraZeneca vaccine was found to be about 75% effective against a separate strain circulating in the UK, called B.1.1.7.
Prof. Shabir Madhi of the University of the Witwatersrand presented the findings to South African health officials on Sunday in a Phase 2 trial of 2,000 healthy participants aged 18 to 65, showing a vaccine effectiveness of 10.4% against mild to moderate diseases in variant. Before the variant appeared, the vaccine was about 75% effective, said Madhi.
However, the trial design did not evaluate the effectiveness of the vaccine against serious illnesses (most participants were young and healthy). Therefore, scientists still hope that the vaccine can offer protection against severe courses of the disease amid a variant called B.1.351.
South Africa’s Health Minister Dr. Zweli Mkhize said on Wednesday that the country would switch to the Johnson & Johnson vaccine for healthcare professionals and, at least for now, will not use Oxford-AstraZeneca.
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AstraZeneca has already expressed confidence in its vaccine to protect against serious diseases. A company spokesman previously told Fox News, in part, “We believe that our vaccine will protect against serious illnesses caused by the new variant B.1.351, since the neutralizing antibody activity is equivalent to that seen with other COVID-19 vaccines that demonstrated activity against more serious illness, and particularly when the dosage interval is optimized for 8-12 weeks. “
During the WHO briefing on Wednesday, Cravioto also said that the group of experts advises the use of the vaccine for all adults aged 18 and over, including those aged 65 and over, although some countries like Germany and France have recommended specifically against this, citing insufficient data.
In addition, SAGE recommended spacing the jabs 8 to 12 weeks for an optimal immune response. An earlier study at the University of Oxford found that the vaccine actually offered more protection when the first and second doses were more widely spaced. The researchers said the vaccine was 76% effective after the first dose and maintained that protection for 22 days to 90 days after the first dose. However, the vaccine was even more effective when administered after longer intervals between the first and the second dose, 82% after an interval of 12 weeks or more.
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Dr Soumya Swaminathan, WHO’s chief scientist, said that the AstraZeneca vaccine is essential because it comprises one of the biggest vaccine actions of COVAX, an initiative co-led by WHO with a focus on vaccine equality, shipping vaccines to developing countries .
Swaminathan said the AstraZeneca vaccine is easier to use and can be stored at normal refrigerator temperatures. AstraZeneca has already agreed to provide 170 million doses of its vaccine for the COVAX initiative, which Swaminathan said could start rolling out later this month. Experts say that widespread vaccination will help prevent emerging mutations in strains of coronavirus and ultimately beat the pandemic.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.