Pfizer: Rx will stop variant

The vaccine BioNTech developed with Pfizer will be effective against a highly contagious mutant strain of coronavirus which is fueling a surge of infections across the United Kingdom, the pharmaceutical company said Tuesday.

The German-based drugmaker’s CEO, Ugur Sahin, made the comments a day after the European Union approved the two-shot COVID-19 treatment for emergency use.

“We don’t know at the moment if our vaccine is also able to provide protection against this new variant,” Sahin. “But scientifically, it is highly likely that the immune response by this vaccine also can deal with the new virus variants.”

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson reversed course over the weekend about easing safety rules that would have allowed for household mixing during the holidays. Instead, he implemented some of the harshest guidelines the nation has faced since the fast-spreading mutation was detected in London and surrounding regions in recent weeks.

Medical experts have repeatedly said they do not believe the strain is more deadly or that it will affect vaccine distribution, which kicked off in the U.K earlier this month.

Sahin said the proteins on the UK variant are 99% the same as the more well-known strains, leaving scientists at BioNTech fairly certain the vaccine will still work. He added that additional testing will be required to ensure the treatment’s efficacy, which should take about two weeks.

Should the vaccine require adjustments for the new variant, the company would likely be able to make the necessary changes in about six weeks — which does not include the time it could take for regulators to approve any updates before the shots can be used.

BioNTech’s vaccine, which was developed together with U.S. pharmaceutical company Pfizer, has been authorized for use in more than 45 countries including Britain, the United States and the EU. Hundreds of thousands of people have already received the shots.