Delivering super-cooled vaccine a challenge

Getting a coronavirus vaccine from manufacturing sites to some parts of the world with rural populations and unreliable electricity supply will be an immense challenge, given the need to store some vials at temperatures as low as minus 80 degrees Celsius (112 Fahrenheit), Deutsche Post warned on Tuesday.

The German logistics firm said that distribution of an eventual vaccine across large parts of Africa, South America and Asia would require extraordinary measures to keep deliveries of so-called mRNA vaccines refrigerated at Antarctic-level temperatures. Companies developing vaccines requiring exceptional cold storage, such as Moderna (MRNA.O) and CureVac CVAC.O, are working hard to make their injections last longer in transit.

The novel class of mRNA vaccines is among the furthest advanced in a field of 33 immunisation shots currently being tested on humans globally, but they may need to be cooled at minus 80 degrees Celsius.

But upgrading cold storage infrastructure in regions outside the 25 most advanced countries, home to one third of the global population, will pose an immense challenge, said Deutsche Post in its study, conducted with consultancy firm McKinsey. Vaccine developers Translate Bio (TBIO.O) and Moderna said in June they are working to produce evidence in time for the rollout that their respective products can be shipped and stored at less extreme temperatures.

A spokesman for CureVac said its vaccine candidate is based on an experimental rabies vaccine which has already been shown to keep its molecular structure when stored in a regular fridge for months.

Tests are underway to show the COVID-19 product has the same durability and the company is confident the data will be "competitive", he added. Deutsche Post said that even if the vaccine cold chain requires temperatures of only minus 8 degrees Celsius.