By James Paton
The University of Oxford confirmed that the Covid-19 vaccine it is developing with AstraZeneca Plc produced strong immune responses in older adults in an initial study, and key findings are expected from the final phase of trials in the coming weeks.
The results, published Thursday in the medical journal The Lancet, shed more light on preliminary data published in recent months showing that the experimental injection elicited an immune response in older people, who are at increased risk of severe disease. Researchers are still anxiously awaiting late-stage trial results that will show whether the Astra-Oxford vaccine can meet the high standard set by pioneers Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc.
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Those findings will follow a string of positive news on the vaccine front. Pfizer, in collaboration with Germany’s BioNTech SE, said Wednesday that a final analysis of the trial data showed its Covid vaccine to be 95% effective, paving the way for the company to apply for the first regulatory clearance from the US. For a coronavirus vaccine in a few days. Modern seems equally effective.
Results from the phase 2 Oxford study show that the vaccine is better tolerated in older people and produces a similar immune response in young adults and the elderly. The study involved 560 adults, including 240 over the age of 70. That follows findings in older participants released last month and data in July that showed the vaccine elicited robust immune responses in adults ages 18 to 55. Older patients have been the hardest hit by the pandemic, with the vast majority of deaths occurring in people over the age of 60.
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“Inducing robust immune responses in older adults has been a long-standing challenge,” Angela Minassian, an Oxford researcher, wrote in a statement. “Demonstrating that the technology of this vaccine is capable of inducing these responses, in the group at greatest risk of severe Covid-19 disease, offers hope that the efficacy of the vaccine will be similar in young and old adults.”
Oxford expects end-stage efficacy results in the coming weeks, according to its statement.
The study shows that the vaccine causes few side effects and elicits a virus-targeting T-cell response within 14 days of the first dose and a protective antibody response within 28 days of the booster dose. , according to the report. Neutralization levels were reached 14 days after a booster vaccination in 208 of 209 recipients.
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