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In the global race for a corona vaccine, another research project has reported great success. According to the company, the average of the American biotechnology group Moderna showed in an intermediate analysis an effectiveness of 94.5 percent in the protection against Covid-19. Moderna hopes to apply for an emergency permit in the US in the next few weeks. The European Medicines Agency EMA has already started an accelerated approval process.
Moderna is the second major US pharmaceutical company to report positive data from the pivotal study with a corona vaccine in one week. Recently, the German biotech company BioNTech and its American partner Pfizer were the first companies in the world to publish a success from their crucial study. Consequently, their vaccine offered more than 90 percent protection against Covid-19, and the application for an emergency permit in the US is planned for this month. In the United States, this could mean that two corona vaccines could hit the market in December.
Moderna’s vaccine can score points primarily for its shelf-life benefits compared to the BioNTech vaccine. It does not require ultra-cold storage and can therefore be more easily delivered. Moderna expects it to be stable for 30 days at temperatures of two to eight degrees Celsius and that it can be stored at minus 20 degrees Celsius for up to six months. BioNTech and Pfizer’s vaccine, on the other hand, must be shipped and stored at minus 70 degrees, and can be stored for five days at normal freezing temperatures.
Both vaccines are based on so-called messenger RNA (mRNA), which is supposed to transmit information to human cells to fight pathogens. Such a vaccine should be able to be manufactured on a large scale faster than conventional ones. But it also needs more cooling. BioNTech is already working to extend the shelf life of its vaccine at lower temperatures.
The phase III study of the Moderna mRNA-1273 RNA vaccine involves a total of 30,000 subjects. Half of them received the vaccine, the other half acts as a control group and receives a placebo. So far, a total of 95 study participants have contracted Covid-19. Of these, only five cases were actually vaccinated, 90 cases were diagnosed in the control group. This results in an effectiveness of 94.5 percent.
According to Moderna, the test subjects had only mild to moderate side effects. However, a significant proportion of the volunteers experienced more pain after taking the second dose. So far there are no data on the degree to which 1273 mRNA prevents infection. For complete protection from vaccination, two doses are needed at intervals.
Renowned American immunologist and corona expert Anthony Fauci reacted enthusiastically to Moderna’s data. “There is nothing better, 94.5 percent is really excellent,” Fauci said. According to him, the first vaccinations in the United States could begin in December for high-risk groups, and the rest of the population could be more likely from the end of April. “And that will extend to May, June and July. It will take a few months.”
Moderna says it will be ready by the end of the year to deliver about 20 million doses of vaccines to the US if approved. Up to 1 billion cans are expected to be made in the next year. Countries like Russia, China and recently Bahrain have already launched vaccines with restrictions and are already vaccinating parts of the population with them. But how well these vaccines actually protect and what side effects they can have is currently largely open.
Meanwhile, the EU Commission has agreed a contract with the Tübingen-based company Curevac for the purchase of up to 405 million doses of the corona vaccine. This was announced by the President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, on Monday afternoon in Brussels. This is the fifth framework agreement with pharmaceutical companies that have a promising coronavirus vaccine in development.
According to von der Leyens, the EU Commission is still in negotiations with the American company Moderna and hopes to conclude them soon. Curevac is not as far along in the testing phase of its vaccine as Moderna and its competitor Biontech / Pfizer, which also published promising test data last week.
Von der Leyen emphasized that it was not yet clear which vaccine would be safe and effective. That is why the EU Commission relies on a large portfolio. After approval, the purchased quantities will be distributed to EU countries based on population size. The responsible pharmaceutical authority EMA will subject the funds to a rigorous review before approval and will not make any compromises in terms of safety, stressed von der Leyen.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has welcomed the latest news about the high efficacy of several candidate vaccines against coronavirus. At the same time, the head of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, was “extremely concerned” on Monday in view of the increase in the number of Covid 19 cases in several countries. He warned governments not to “play with fire.” It is not “the moment of complacency,” Tedros stressed in front of reporters.
