[ad_1]
The efficacy of the Oxford University / AstraZeneca vaccine paves the way for a cheaper and more easily transportable vaccine to be available to some of the poorest countries in the world.
Unlike the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, AstraZeneca’s experimental vaccine is already part of Covax, the global initiative that hopes to distribute about 2 billion doses to 92 low- and middle-income countries at a maximum cost of $ 3 per dose.
As part of the initiative, AstraZeneca announced over the summer that it would make available at a cost 1.3 billion doses of its then-untested vaccine, to ensure that no vaccine was cornered by the world’s richest countries.
The agreement follows agreements with both Covax and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (Cepi), which agreed to help fund AstraZeneca’s vaccine manufacturing program even while it was still being developed.
Under the agreement, the Serum Institute of India will produce 1 billion licensed doses of AstraZeneca for India and low-income countries with a goal of producing 400 million doses by the end of the year.
Even before the interim results of the phase 3 trials of the vaccine were announced, it was suggested that the Indian government would quickly follow up on any emergency use authorization issued by the UK government to grant its own emergency use authorization.
“We have started manufacturing the product,” Serum Institute executive director Suresh Jadhav said over the weekend, adding that the institute could produce 50 to 60 million doses of the candidate vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford every month starting in January, with 80 million -100m doses already produced.
AstraZeneca’s promising results come at a time of growing concern about how to distribute the vaccine fairly.
With an estimate that more than 17 billion doses may be required globally, and with the risk of some spoiling, the world’s richest countries have used their economic clout to overstock potential vaccines, often in excess of multiple candidates out of the more than 300 in development, to push to the front of the queue.
The countries of the developing world, by contrast, have lagged behind, without the influence of blocs like the European Union.
Another advantage of the AstraZeneca vaccine, compared to Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, which are based on mRNA technology and require chains of ultra-cold storage capacity, similar to that required for the Ebola vaccine used successfully in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. is that it can be stored at more normal temperatures and is expected to last longer.
The vaccine can be transported in “normal refrigerated conditions” of 2-8C (36-46F), AstraZeneca said.
By comparison, Pfizer plans to distribute its vaccine using specially designed “heat carriers” that use dry ice to maintain temperatures of -70ºC.
AstraZeneca has said that it will immediately seek early approval of the vaccine when possible, and will seek an emergency use list from the World Health Organization, to make the vaccine available in low-income countries.
Pascal Soriot, chief executive of the pharmaceutical firm, said Monday that Oxford’s simpler supply chain for the vaccine and AstraZeneca’s commitment to providing it on a non-profit basis during the pandemic meant that it would be affordable and available to people across the world. world.
He said: “Today marks an important milestone in our fight against the pandemic. The efficacy and safety of this vaccine confirm that it will be very effective against Covid-19 and will have an immediate impact on this public health emergency. Additionally, the vaccine’s simple supply chain and our non-profit commitment and commitment to broad, equitable and timely access means it will be affordable and available globally, supplying hundreds of millions of doses with approval. “
