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Researchers from the UK and Russia are ready to test whether the combination of injections of the Oxford-AstraZeneca and Sputnik V coronavirus vaccines could result in better protection than two doses of the same. According to the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), testing for it would begin at the end of the year. Confirming the same, the British-Swedish pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, revealed that it was exploring the possibilities of evaluating different vaccine candidates and combining them with its own to boost immunity.
“On November 23, 2020, following the results showing high efficacy for the Sputnik V vaccine, RDIF and the Gamaleya Center offered AstraZeneca the use of one of the two components of the Sputnik V vaccine,” RDIF announced.
‘Both based on the modified version of adenovirus’
The RDIF has funded the development of the Sputnik V vaccine by Russia’s Gamaleya Institute and was in discussions with AstraZeneca to begin the combined trials for its success. The Guardian reported. The concept of combining two vaccines is called a heterologous primary booster and has in the past assisted in vaccination programs against other diseases. As for the vaccine candidate Sputnik V and AstraZeneca-Oxford COVID-19, both are based on a modified version of the adenovirus, a common cold virus.
The vector stripped of its disease-causing genes and modified to carry genetic instructions for producing the coronavirus spike protein. This causes the cells to elicit an immune response that eventually protects against SARS-CoV-2. By combining Sputnik V and AstraZeneca jab, the researchers now aim to combine two adenovirus vectors to elicit a stronger response.
Read: EU Medicines Agency Says Pfizer-BioNTech COVID Vaccine Decision Would Be Made On Dec 29
Read: COVID vaccine removed after showing false HIV results in Australia
Meanwhile, health officials in the UK now plan to combine the doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine with that of AstraZeneca-University of Oxford. Earlier this month, British regulators approved Pfizer’s vaccine candidate to become the first country in the world to do so. However, researchers from the UK Vaccine Task Force now hope to combine both vaccines to bolster their effectiveness against COVID-19.
Read: UK regulators warn people with significant allergic reactions to refrain from vaccination
Read: UK Officials To Combine COVID Injections From Pfizer And AstraZeneca For Vaccine Trials
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