JOHANNESBURG (PA) – South Africa is considering administering a COVID-19 vaccine that is still being tested by healthcare workers after it suspended another shot on which preliminary data indicated are not effective in preventing mild diseases until to moderate from the dominant variant in the country.
The country is struggling to come up with a new vaccination strategy after it stopped using the AstraZeneca vaccine – which is cheaper and easier to handle than others and which many hoped will be crucial to fighting the pandemic in developing countries. Among the possibilities considered: mixing the AstraZeneca vaccine with another and administering the Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccine, which has not yet been authorized for use anywhere, to 100,000 health workers, while monitoring its effectiveness against the variant.
The inoculation strategy in South Africa is being pursued globally, as the variant detected for the first time and now dominant here is spreading in over 30 countries. Officials say the virus is more contagious and there is evidence that it could be more virulent; Recent studies have also shown that it can infect people who have survived the original form of the virus.
After a second increase, cases and deaths in South Africa have started to decline recently, but it is still struggling with one of the most severe outbreaks in Africa, with over 46,000 deaths. He is worried that another increase will come in May or June, when the country of the southern hemisphere is heading for its winter.
To date, early results from Johnson & Johnson vaccine studies have shown less protection against the variant than the original disease, but it is still extremely effective in preventing severe and fatal cases, according to Dr. Glenda Gray, director of the South Africa Medical Research Council. , which led the South African side of the global process. A candidate for the Novavax vaccine had similar results.
“Can not wait. We already have good local data, “said Gray, noting that clinical trials show it is safe. She added that South Africa was making urgent plans to “launch and evaluate it on the ground”.
“Scientists need to come together and quickly figure out what approach we will use,” Health Minister Zweli Mhkize said on Sunday evening, announcing the suspension of the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine, which is currently the only one available in South Africa. Deliveries to others, including Pfizer and BioNTech, are expected soon.
The suspension has left South Africa’s vaccination plans in disarray just one week after the country received its first 1 million doses of vaccine. It came after early results from a small clinical trial showed that the shot did not prevent mild to moderate COVID-19 cases in young adults, according to an announcement by the University of the Witwatersrand, which conducted the test.
The AstraZeneca study involved 2,000 healthy volunteers with a mean age of 31 years and showed that only 22% were protected against mild to moderate cases of the disease.
Experts say the vaccine could continue to prevent severe disease – and that would help slow the pandemic and prevent hospitals from becoming overwhelmed by patients.
“Vaccines that are effective against more severe forms of the disease may not affect the milder forms, so there is optimism that severe disease will continue to be prevented by vaccines,” said Peter Openshaw, a professor of experimental medicine at Imperial College London.
But the results were quite disappointing that South African officials decided to postpone the launch of the vaccine, which was to be given to front-line health workers starting in mid-February.
The preliminary study was not reviewed by colleagues – the gold standard in scientific studies – but was still “a reality check,” said Professor Shabir Madhi, who led the process. “It simply came to our notice then. We need to recalibrate our expectations. ”
Now, the country is looking to change gears. You may continue to give at least one dose of AstraZeneca in the hope that it will protect against severe illness and death from this variant. Also consider combining the vaccine with one of the other vaccines. Most vaccines tested require two doses; Johnson & Johnson is an exception.
An experimental study began last week in the UK – the first of its kind in the world – testing whether doctors could safely mix and match the doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine with the vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech.
An additional complication is that the doses of AstraZeneca in South Africa have an expiration date of April, which makes it difficult to administer two doses in such a short period.
Last week, Sarah Gilbert of Oxford University, who helped develop the AstraZeneca vaccine, said researchers are currently working on modifying the vaccine by inserting a genetic sequence from the new variant.
Experts in South Africa have conducted clinical trials on the effects of the variant, known as B.1.351. This variant quickly became over 90% here.
The variant has reduced the level of protection offered by virtually all vaccines, but most vaccines have satisfactory efficacy in protecting against severe cases and deaths caused by version, Madhi said. Novavax vaccine studies, for example, have shown diminished but still good protection against the variant, he said.
“It’s not just a misfortune and death … we have vaccines that work,” Madhi said.
However, he added, “It is possible that this virus will be with us throughout our lives. It is unlikely to be eradicated soon. ”