With a third booster dose, the AstraZeneca vaccine would be effective against any variant of COVID-19

The COVID-19 vaccine from the AstraZeneca laboratory and the University of Oxford is effective as a third booster dose, having increased their antibodies against protein S, the so-called spike protein, among study participants.

The news comes at a time when Vaccine makers warn world will need annual boosters, or new vaccines, to deal with variants of the virus, although some scientists wonder if such injections are necessary.

The effort to immunize the British population against COVID-19 has been phenomenal. In six months, more than 56 million doses of vaccine were administered to more than 36 million people. Since the distribution of the first and second doses is going well, the UK government is considering giving people a third booster dose. As the blockades and restrictions in the country begin to be lifted and the new Indian variant of SARS-CoV-2 threatens the protection gained by the population.

As reported this Wednesday by the newspaper Financial Times, from someone familiar with the results of the study, it shows that the antibody response to the booster vaccine is “sufficiently strong against any variant” and allay concerns that adenoviruses may not be used more than once.

However, reports so far have been conflicting on whether or not to apply a third dose. And they have offered different suggestions on when the reinforcements will be given, to whom it will be given, and what exactly people will receive. But while it’s impossible to say for sure what will happen in the future, based on what is known about COVID-19 and the pandemic, it is possible to predict in general terms how a booster program might work.

AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford did not immediately respond to a request from the agency Reuters to comment on the Oxford study, which has yet to be published.

The vaccine uses new technology that uses a modified version of the chimpanzee adenovirus, which causes the common cold, as a vector to carry instructions to human cells.

This design has raised concerns among scientists that doses could lose their effectiveness if annual injections are required to combat new variants.

About who will be offered a third vaccine, specialists agree that “People in high risk groups will likely need a booster dose to ensure that good immune protection is maintained.” In fact, the UK Department of Health and Welfare has announced that the boosters will be distributed based on clinical need.

Will the booster be an updated formula?

Vaccines used in the UK so far show good efficacy against circulating variants of the virus. Based on this, the booster injections will likely be the same as those used previously.

However, one of the main concerns raised by experts is related to the emergence of new variants of the virus which can evade the immunity provided by existing vaccines, known as “vaccine leak”.

If a leak variant emerges, one strategy may be to stimulate people with the existing vaccine that is most effective against it. For example, the B1351 variant identified in South Africa appears to have some escape potential, as the Oxford and AstraZeneca vaccine is less effective in preventing mild to moderate COVID-19 when faced. However, early research, some of which has yet to be reviewed by other scientists, suggests that the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine may not be affected as badly.

Now, if none of the existing vaccines are effective enough, updated vaccines may be required, which will take time to change the formulations and mass produce them. Meanwhile, strategies like this of studying the effectiveness of adding booster doses to existing vaccines, delaying second doses, or combining different formulations seem to be the options science has most within reach. hand.

It is not known when Oxford and AstraZeneca plan to release the data from the study, according to the paper viewed by the newspaper.

At the same time, the European Union (EU) this month signed a new contract for 1.8 billion doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to cover booster doses.

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