There are several new preparations in the starting blocks for vaccinations against the coronavirus. Including the protein vaccine from the US company Novavax. But how effective is the vaccine?
The German vaccination campaign is running – now almost half of all German citizens have been vaccinated against the corona virus at least once. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) currently reports (June 14) 48.7 percent. 61.4 million vaccine doses have been administered to date, and over 22 million Germans are even fully immunized. But there are still bottlenecks in vaccine deliveries *. While many German citizens are willing to vaccinate, manufacturers such as AstraZeneca or Johnson & Johnson are repeatedly delayed in delivery. The vaccine shortage that this creates could soon be made good. Because there are already other vaccines in the starting blocks *.
Among other things, the world is eagerly awaiting the approval of the Tübingen vaccine from CureVac. However, the mRNA vaccine repeatedly has to accept setbacks and the start of the CureVac vaccination is delayed again *. In addition, as reported by echo24.de * , a US drug is also apparently about to be approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA). The protein vaccine from Novavax. But how effective is the vaccine?
Corona vaccination: Novavax – how effective is the protein vaccine from the USA?
The US pharmaceutical company Novavax has now published the latest study data. They say: The protein vaccine against the coronavirus is safe and highly effective. According to the manufacturer, the vaccine not only protects against the original virus, but also against its variants. According to the results of a phase 3 study, NVX-CoV2372, as the vaccine is called, has an effectiveness of 90.4 percent. The protection against moderate and severe disease progression was even 100 percent.
Almost 30,000 people from the United States and Mexico took part in the study. Two thirds of the participants received the actual vaccine, 30 percent of the subjects only received a placebo. The result: In the study participants in the vaccinated group, around 90 percent fewer diseases occurred than in the test subjects in the control group.
Corona vaccination: Novavax – this is known so far about the side effects:
And there is more good news: Most of the subjects in the Novavax study also tolerated their vaccination well. According to the manufacturer, the side effects were comparable to those of other vaccines – that is, mainly pain at the injection site, and some participants also complained of fatigue, headache and muscle pain. Blood clots or heart problems have not occurred so far.
Incidentally, NVX-CoV2372 is a completely different type of active ingredient than the corona vaccines previously approved in Europe. The preparations from BioNTech and Moderna are so-called mRNA vaccines, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson have launched vector vaccines. Novavax’s preparation, on the other hand, is a protein vaccine. It works in a similar way to flu vaccines, using the spike proteins that coat the coronavirus.
Corona vaccination: Novavax – this is how the protein vaccine from the USA works
Copies of the spike proteins are grown in the laboratory. These are then injected into the body in the form of a vaccination. The immune system eventually responds to the proteins in the vaccine and can develop antibodies. Thus, a vaccinated person is protected in the event of an actual corona infection.
Novavax continues to work urgently to comply with the regulations and to bring this vaccine, which is based on a long tried and tested principle, to a world that still urgently needs vaccines.
For the global vaccination campaign, the Novavax vaccine could play a particularly important role in the previously disadvantaged developing countries. According to the manufacturer, the vaccine is easy to transport and can be stored in a normal refrigerator without any problems. Up to now, vaccinations have been carried out twice within three weeks for complete immunization. In addition, the US itself already has enough vaccine available. That is why the Novavax preparation is to be used mainly in countries that have so far been neglected.
In a Novavax press release, CEO Stanley Erck said, “Many of our first cans will go to low- and middle-income countries, and that has been the goal from the start.” Novavax expects approval, including in the US and Europe, to End of September. Until then, the US pharmaceutical company wants to produce 100 million vaccine doses of its corona vaccine NVX-CoV2372 per month. * echo24.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA.
