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PETALING JAYA: About four in five Malaysians (82%) are ready to be vaccinated against the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid-19, according to a YouGov survey.
This result comes amid a flood of news about the reported efficacy of several vaccines that are currently being studied in phase 3 clinical trials.
From the United States, the biotechnology company Moderna reported that the first results indicate that its vaccine is 94.5% effective against the coronavirus, while the pharmaceutical company Pfizer, with its German partner BioNTech, announced that its initial analysis shows an effectiveness of more than 90%.
In Russia, the vaccine developed by the Gamaleya research institute National Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology It has a reported efficacy of 92%, also from the initial analysis.
Meanwhile, three vaccine candidates from different Chinese biopharmaceutical companies have been reported to trigger antibody responses in participants without serious adverse effects during their respective phase 1 and 2 clinical trials.
All three are currently in phase 3 clinical trials, although results from these have not yet been announced.
The survey, which involved more than 12,000 respondents in 11 countries, reported that the US received the highest mentions (45%) for reliability in vaccine manufacturing, followed by Russia (40%) and China (32%).
However, Russia was the first choice of 21% of those surveyed, followed by the United States (15%) and China (13%).
Each participant was asked to name three countries in terms of reliability with respect to vaccine manufacture.
Among Malaysians, Russia was among the top two countries in this category.
On average, 44% of those surveyed had heard of the Russian vaccine called Sputnik V, although only a quarter of Malaysians (26%) had.
Among the respondents who preferred a certain type of Covid-19 vaccine, 88% wanted one based on the human adenoviral vector.
Nine out of 10 Malaysians who had a preference also chose this type of vaccine.
The Sputnik V vaccine, as well as the vaccine from Chinese company CanSino, uses a weakened adenovirus to deliver the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein to the body.
Both Moderna and Pfizer / BioNTech vaccines are based on new messenger RNA (ribonucleic acid) technology.
The other two Chinese vaccines are based on inactivated SARS-CoV-2 viruses.
The survey, conducted from October 9 to 19, covered Brazil, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Vietnam.
It was sponsored by the Russian Fund for Direct Investment, which is investing in the production of the Sputnik V vaccine and supporting its development.
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