Pfizer and BioNTech injection may defeat new variants: study – Manila Bulletin

The COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer, Inc. and BioNTech SE may protect against rapidly spreading novel variants of the coronavirus that have emerged in the UK and South Africa, according to a study.

The study, conducted by University of Texas medical researchers and supported by companies, focused on the crucial mutation N501Y in the spike protein of the virus that is common to both fast-spreading variants.

Antibodies in the blood of people who had been vaccinated were able to neutralize a laboratory-created version of the mutant virus.

Although these are preliminary data, the results are a promising sign that the vaccine will likely have an effect against the new variants, a major concern for health authorities who are fighting to stop a wave of new infections even as they seek to vaccinate hundreds of thousands of people. vulnerable people.

Both the UK and South African strains appear to be more infectious than the previous mutations.

The research examined the response to mutant viruses in blood samples taken from 20 people who had received the mRNA vaccine from the companies as part.
from a previous clinical trial.

The research did not study other mutations in the spike protein. Still, the antibodies in the blood of vaccinated people did as good a job of disarming the mutant virus as they did with the non-mutant version.

“This is clearly positive, but there are important caveats to add,” Adam Barker, an analyst at London-based Shore Capital Group, Ltd. wrote in a note. The study only addresses one mutation and does not show whether the vaccine can actually prevent people from becoming infected with the new variant, he wrote.

“That said, the working assumption remains that the vaccines will be at least partially effective against the newer variants.”

The findings were also consistent with test results in 15 other mutations that have been found in SARS-CoV-2 strains, the researchers said.

“We are encouraged” by the first findings, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said in a tweet.

Executives at BioNTech, as well as Moderna, Inc., the developer of a rival mRNA injection, had previously said they believed their vaccines would protect against the new strains.

The University of Texas study is one of the first to back up those claims. The results were posted to the bioRxiv prepress server early Friday, prior to peer review.

The research comes as COVID-19 spreads globally at record daily levels, likely accelerated by new strains, and as countries begin rolling out vaccines.

The UK variant, which has been identified in the US as well as in countries from South Korea to Canada, is believed to be 57% to 70% more transmissible than other strains of the virus.

Viruses have the opportunity to change through naturally occurring mutations as they replicate and circulate in their hosts. Some, like influenza, evolve rapidly with thousands of different mutations and lineages, while others are more stable.