Oxford to trial combination of vaccine shots
The trial will show if different doses will give greater flexibility in pressured vaccine delivery schedules
LONDON/WASHINGTON: Oxford University announced on Thursday it will launch a medical trial alternating doses of Covid-19 vaccines created by different manufacturers, the first study of its kind.
The trial will show whether different Covid doses - those created by the Astrazeneca and Pfizer-biontech pharma companies - can be used interchangeably to allow greater flexibility in pressured vaccine delivery schedules.
The British government’s deputy chief medical officer, Jonathan Van-tam, said the trial would offer “greater insight” into the use of vaccines against Covid.
“Given the inevitable challenges of immunising large numbers of the population against Covid-19 and potential global supply constraints, there are definite advantages to having data that could support a more flexible immunisation programme,” Van-tam said.
“It is also even possible that by combining vaccines, the immune response could be enhanced giving even higher antibody levels that last longer,” Van-tam added.
The 13-month study will compare different combinations of prime and booster doses of the Astrazeneca and Pfizer vaccines at intervals of four and 12 weeks.
US CDC says UK variant could be deadlier
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has analysed data on the new coronavirus variant that originated in the UK and fears that it could be far more deadly than the earlier coronavirus strain, according to CNN.
The report quotes Rochelle Walensky, director of the US CDC, as saying, “There’s data that suggests that some of the variants, the B.1.1.7 variant, may actually... lead to increased mortality, and the jury’s still out with regard to how these vaccines are going to work against these variants.”
Bat caves need exploring, says WHO team member
A member of the World Health Organization-led team searching for clues to the origins of Covid-19 in Wuhan said work was needed to try to trace genetic elements of the virus in bat caves.
Peter Daszak, a zoologist and animal disease expert, said the team in Wuhan had been receiving new information about how the virus, first identified in the city in late 2019, led to a pandemic. He did not elaborate but said there was no evidence to suggest it emerged from a lab.
The origin of the coronavirus has become politicised following accusations that China was not transparent in its early handling of the outbreak.