As the coronavirus pandemic continues to hold its grip across the globe, a flicker of light is being sighted as a preliminary analysis of the first effective coronavirus vaccine shows that it can prevent more than 90% of people from contracting the deadly virus.
According to BBC, the vaccine has been tested on 43,500 people in six countries without any complications arising from its administration.
The developers – Pfizer and BioNTech – which plans to apply for emergency approval to administer the vaccine by the end of the month says the result is a “great day for science and humanity”.
Pfizer said it will continue the trial until there are 164 Covid-19 cases among participants in vaccinated and non-vaccinated groups. Given the recent spike in US infection rates, that number could be reached by early December
The data is yet to be peer-reviewed or published in a medical journal. Pfizer said it would do so once it had results from the entire trial.
To save time, the companies began manufacturing the vaccine before they knew whether it would work. They now expect to produce up to 50m doses, or enough vaccine to protect 25 million people, this year, and up to 1.3bn doses in 2021.
It uses a completely experimental approach – that involves injecting part of the virus’s genetic code – to train the immune system.
Previous trials have shown the vaccine trains the body to make both antibodies – and another part of the immune system called T-cells to fight the coronavirus.
Two doses, three weeks apart, are needed. The trials – in the US, Germany, Brazil, Argentina, South Africa, and Turkey – show 90% protection is achieved seven days after the second dose.
Pfizer believes it will be able to supply 50 million doses by the end of this year, and around 1.3 billion by the end of 2021.
Meanwhile, Pfizer said there are logistical challenges, as the vaccine has to be kept in ultra-cold storage at below minus 80C.
Dr. Albert Bourla, the chairman of Pfizer, said: “We are a significant step closer to providing people around the world with a much-needed breakthrough to help bring an end to this global health crisis.”
Prof Ugur Sahin, one of the founders of BioNTech, advanced that the results are a “milestone” in the history of science.
The companies say they will have enough safety data by the third week of November to take their vaccine to regulators.
Until then countries can’t begin their vaccination campaigns. The UK has already put in an order for 40 million doses, enough for 20 million people.
“This news made me smile from ear to ear,” Prof Peter Horby, from the University of Oxford.
“It is a relief… there is a long long way to go before vaccines will start to make a real difference, but this feels to me like a watershed moment.”