LONDON (Reuters) – The UK on Thursday launched a study to assess the immune responses generated if doses of COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer Inc and AstraZeneca Plc are combined into a two-shot program.
The British researchers behind the trial said vaccination data for people with the two different types of coronavirus vaccines could help to understand that photos can be released with greater flexibility around the world. Initial data on immune responses are expected to be generated around June.
The study will examine the immune responses of an initial dose of Pfizer vaccine followed by a booster of AstraZeneca, and vice versa, at intervals of 4 and 12 weeks.
Both the mRNA vaccine developed by Pfizer and Biontech and the adenovirus vector vaccine developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca are currently being launched in the UK, with a 12-week gap between two doses of the same vaccine.
More vaccines are expected to be added to the study when they are approved and released.
Recruitment for the study begins on Thursday, with more than 800 participants expected to participate, the researchers said. This makes it much smaller than the clinical trials that were used to determine the effectiveness of vaccines individually.
The study will not evaluate the overall effectiveness of the shooting combinations, but the researchers will measure antibody and T cell responses, as well as monitor for possible unexpected side effects.
Matthew Snape, an Oxford vaccinologist leading the study, said initial results could inform the vaccine’s implementation in the second half of the year.
“We will get some results, we expect, by June or around, which will inform the use of booster doses in the general population,” he told reporters.
The study aims to recruit people over the age of 50 who may be at higher risk than younger people who have not already been vaccinated.
AstraZeneca’s image is also being tested in combination with the Russian Sputnik V vaccine, and the head of British researchers said more studies should be done on the combination of vaccines.
Reporting by Alistair Smout; Editing by Bill Berkrot