Fiocruz says that the Oxford vaccine against Covid-19 will only be delivered in March | Rio de Janeiro

According to the agency, The reason for the delay in the production of vaccines in Brazil is due to not having received one of the supplies for the manufacture of Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine.

The missing compound to start production it is the active pharmaceutical ingredient (IFA), for which AstraZeneca is responsible.

The input comes from China and has no date yet to arrive, according to a note released by Fiocruz. Also according to the Foundation, the ingredient reception was scheduled for January. Production details will be informed when the arrival date of the product is confirmed.

The expectation is deliver 100 million doses by July and another 110 million at the end of the year.

Butantan leadership calls for negotiations with China

The director of the Butantan Institute, Dimas Covas, demanded that President Jair Bolsonaro (without a party) have the dignity to defend the CoronaVac vaccine.

He also demanded the agility of Itamaraty to allow the arrival of raw material from China to continue the production of the immunizer against Covid-19, the only one applied so far to the country’s population.

The statement was made this morning (19) at an event in the interior of São Paulo.

According to the blog of journalist Andréia Sadi, Bolsonaro’s advisers are evaluating names to unite China with supplies for CoronaVac.

According to the blog, Vice President Hamilton Mourão is available to contact China and help with input, as he has a good relationship with the Chinese Vice President.

Note from Fiocruz on Oxford:

Although still within the contractual period in January, the non-confirmation until the current date of shipment of the Active Pharmaceutical Principle (API) may have an impact on the production schedule initially planned for the release of the first batches between 8 and 12 of February. production will be detailed as soon as the arrival date of the input is confirmed. Although it is necessary to make adjustments at the beginning of the initially agreed production schedule, Fiocruz maintains its commitment to deliver 50 million doses until April of this year, 100.4 million until July and another 110 million during the second semester, totaling 210.4 million vaccines in 2021 ”.

Step by step of vaccine production:

• as raw material in hand, starts up, then the actual processing of the vaccine. The first step is to make the formulation, when the components that will stabilize the vaccine and dilute the virus concentration are added to the vaccine concentrate;
• Right away, in filling, the immunizer is transported from the large tanks stainless steel for small glass bottles, the same ones that will later go to health posts;
• Already with the immunizer, these vials are closed with a rubber stopper and proceed to sewing, where they receive an aluminum seal;
• The last step is to label and pack, where the vials are labeled with the vaccine identification, lot number, date of manufacture and expiration date, and other important information. They are housed in boxes called cartridges that guarantee the protection of the packaging during distribution. At that time some samples are separated and tracked for strict quality control, where they will be subjected to potency, stability and sterility tests.

Definitive medical history

To begin the distribution of the vaccine in the country, it will be necessary to have a definitive health registry for its use in Brazil.

According to Fiocruz, the forecast is that the meeting with Anvisa is scheduled for this week.

The vaccines that began to be distributed on Monday (18) are CoronaVac, developed by the Sinovac Chinese Laboratory in association with the Butantan Institute, from Sao Paulo. The first doses arrived ready from China.

Butantan says it produced another four million dose in Brazil. The federal government states that the Institute has not yet requested an emergency authorization for the use of these lots.

On Sunday (17), the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) approved two vaccines.

Coronavac was 50% (50.38%) effective in testing. This means that the vaccine developed by the Sinovac laboratory, in partnership with the Butantan Institute, reduced the chances of contracting Covid-19 by half and was 100% effective against severe symptoms.

• Understand how the doses of Butantan and Fiocruz go to health posts in Brazil
• Can I get infected with the coronavirus when I get the vaccine?

The vaccine developed by the University of Oxford, United Kingdom, and the AstraZeneca laboratory, had an average effectiveness of 70% (70.4%). Oxford and Coronavac should be applied in two doses, 28 days apart.

The two vaccines should also be stored in refrigerators at 2-8ºC.