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We can start: approval of the first corona vaccine in the EU has been granted. Biontech and Pfizer want to deliver as quickly as possible. In Germany, the vaccination start date is December 27.
Following conditional approval of its corona vaccine by the EU Commission, the Mainz company Biontech and the US pharmaceutical company Pfizer want to start the first deliveries immediately. “Deliveries will start immediately and will be phased out over the course of 2020 and 2021 to ensure a fair distribution of the vaccines in accordance with the terms of the EU contract,” the two companies said. Vaccine doses for Europe are said to be manufactured at Biontech’s production facilities in Germany and at Pfizer’s plant in Puurs, Belgium.
Remains effective even with a mutated virus
Biontech chief and co-founder Ugur Sahin called the approval of the EU Commission a “historic achievement”. “We believe that vaccination can help reduce the number of people hospitalized in the high-risk population.” In the next two years, Biontech and Pfizer would collect more data on efficacy and safety, Sahin said. Also, the vaccine will be tested against all emerging mutations. In one ARD interview He said the variant that appeared in the UK was expected to continue to be effective. “We know that our vaccine attacks the virus in many different places,” Sahin said.
The vaccine will be marketed in the EU under the name Comirnaty. The name is composed of Covid-19, mRNA (the name of the messenger molecule), Community (in English for community) and Immunity (in English for immunity).
The cargo airline Lufthansa Cargo is preparing to transport large quantities of frozen corona vaccines. “Thanks to the recent expansion of our onshore infrastructure, we are also able to process large volumes and transport them around the world and help our customers maintain the cold chain,” said Peter Gerber, head of Lufthansa Cargo. According to a spokeswoman, the company expects the corresponding transport orders in the coming days and weeks.
Vaccines in the EU can start
With the launch, coronavirus vaccines can now start in the European Union as well. At least 15 countries had previously approved the vaccine, including the UK and the US In Germany, the start of vaccination is scheduled for next Sunday. Until then, the Paul Ehrlich Institute (PEI) should verify and approve the vaccine lots.
According to the Federal Minister of Health, Jens Spahn, more than 1.3 million doses of vaccines will be distributed to the federal states before the end of the year. “In January at least another 670,000 cans will be delivered each week,” the CDU politician wrote on Twitter. Previously, it had named the number eleven to 13 million for the first quarter. Since the preparation has to be administered twice, this amount would be sufficient for approximately 5.5 to 6.5 million people. In total, the federal government has insured more than 300 million cans, from Biontech and other manufacturers, through national and key agreements across the EU.
First, people over 80 years of age, nursing home staff and residents, as well as healthcare workers at very high risk of infection should be vaccinated. According to clinical studies, Biontech indicates the effectiveness of the vaccine with 95 percent.
Significant step, but with conditions.
After the decision, the President of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said: “Today we are adding an important chapter to the fight against Covid-19.” The director of the European Medicines Agency EMA, Emer Cooke, spoke of a historic scientific achievement. “It is an important step forward in our fight against the pandemic.”
But the EMA has conditioned its approval. The manufacturer is obliged to transmit data on the long-term effects to the authorities even after the start of regular vaccinations. Information on possible side effects or allergic reactions will also continue to be verified. The EMA is scheduled to hold another meeting on January 6 to decide on the approval of the vaccine from the American company Moderna. He is also testing Oxford University vaccines with AstraZeneca and Janssen. However, so far no official application for approval has been submitted for either of the two vaccines.
First mRNA vaccine
BNT162b2 is the first human messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine to be used. According to the Paul Ehrlich Institute (PEI), the genetic information for the construction of a harmless pathogen is administered by injection into the muscle. The cells of the body use the genetic information from RNA to build the pathogenic component. The human immune system then recognizes the foreign pathogen and develops a protective immune response. Moderna’s preparation is also an mRNA vaccine.
