Coronavirus: Russia has authorized Sputnik Light, its single-dose vaccine, to be 79% effective

The Russian Fund for Direct Investment (FRID) has just announced that Single-dose vaccine using first component of famous Sputnik V approved in Russia. According to the published information, from the analysis of the database of Russians who received only one injection as part of the massive civilian vaccination program and did not receive a second injection for various reasons, between December 5, 2020 and April 15, 2021, it seems to reach an efficiency of 79.4%.

The Gamaleya Institute reports that the “Sputnik Light” it is effective against new virus variants, it allows the development of antigen-specific IgG antibodies in 96.9% of people vaccinated 28 days after vaccination and the cellular immune response to the S protein of SARS-CoV- 2 is already induced on the tenth day in 100% of people vaccinated. In addition, in those who have already been in contact with the virus, the level of antigen-specific IgG antibodies increases more than 40 times in 100% of people vaccinated from the tenth day. No serious adverse effects were recorded. “The morbidity rate, from the 28th day from the date of vaccination, was 0.277% while the incidence among the unvaccinated adult population, measured over a comparable period, was 1.349%,” said the information published.

Phase I / II studies on the safety and immunogenicity of the single-dose “Sputnik Light” vaccine began in January 2021 and interim results were obtained on March 10. On February 21 of this year, the Gamaleya study launched a global study on the effectiveness of Sputnik “Light”. Phase III of a clinical trial involving 7,000 people is underway in the Russian Federation, United Arab Emirates, Ghana and other countries. It is expected that there will be provisional data for this month.

Según explains the viróloga Andrea Gamarnik, que lideró el desarrollo del test CovidAR, el primero creado en el país para medir anticuerpos contra el coronavirus, estos resultados coinciden totalmente con los que arrojó el estudio que realizaron en Individos vacunados con esta fórmula en la Provincia de Buenos Aires. “In the population under 60, we saw the appearance of antibodies in 96%, in the general population under 60 years and over, 94%, and in those over 60, 89% – detail -. In addition, in at least 90% we found the presence of neutralizing antibodies. All with just one dose. Gamaleya’s numbers are almost traced. The point (and it should be kept in mind) is that when the second dose is applied, the levels of antibodies to the coronavirus and neutralizing antibodies increase about 10 times, indicating that the second dose is beneficial. Previously infected people, after a single dose, achieve higher antibody levels than those who were not infected with both doses ”.

“It is a good tool for both initial vaccination and revaccination, and for increasing efficacy when combined with other vaccines,” said Alexander Ginzburg, director of the Gamaleya Center, in the statement which published the news.

For Florencia Cahn, current president of the Argentinian Society for Vaccination and Epidemiology (SAVE), “this is good news and, if the figures are those published, it would make it possible to advance in the vaccination of other groups of patients. ‘age directly with a single dose’.

“The ‘Sputnik Light’ vaccine, using an injection, greatly reduces the likelihood of severe cases of the disease leading to hospitalization,” Kirill Dmitriev, executive director of FRID, said in the statement. A one-component application scheme allows a large number of people to be vaccinated in a short time, which is especially important during the acute phase of the spread of foci of coronavirus infection in the population, and gain group immunity faster. The vaccine’s features facilitate storage and logistics, and it is also affordable under $ 10 ”.