Recent results of another lab trial suggest that the Covid-19 vaccine candidate by Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech is effective against the new coronavirus strain that emerged in the U.K. The antibodies produced through the vaccine were able to neutralize a lab-produced version of the mutant virus.
Led by BioNTech Chief Executive Officer Ugur Sahin, the research was conducted by the University of Texas Medical Branch, the results of which have now been published on preprint server BioRxiv and await peer review. The new research focused on all the 10 mutations found on the coronavirus¡¯s spike protein that helps it bind to host cells.
As reported by Bloomberg, the research was conducted through 16 volunteers in a previous trial of the vaccine in Germany.?
The antibodies developed in the blood of the candidates through the vaccine were found to be equally effective against the original as well just as the mutated coronavirus strains.
Through the results, the research team deduced that it is ¡°very unlikely that the U.K. variant viruses will escape¡± protection from the Pfizer vaccine. The BioNTech team said that it is ready to adapt the vaccine as and when needed in the future.
As further research solidifies the effectiveness of the Pfizer vaccine over the UK strain, vaccination drive in the UK is projected to be much more effective in a Covid-19 stricken country. Citing the rising number of COVID-19 cases and hospitalisation due the new coronavirus strain, the UK government recently decided to increase the duration between two Oxford vaccine doses to be administered to its citizens.
While the vaccine shots were supposed to be given over a four-week period, they will now be administered three months apart.
The move aims to accelerate the rollout of initial doses of the vaccine to the public. This would allow more people in the UK to be inoculated in a shorter time frame. The same policy will also apply to the Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine.