Johnson & Johnson to start distributing its coronavirus vaccine in Europe from April 19

Johnson & Johnson’s coronavirus vaccine to begin distribution in Europe on April 19, according to what the company told AFP on Monday.

This vaccine was, in mid-March, l4th to obtain authorization from the European Medicines Agency (EMA), after those of Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca. Currently, it is only inoculated in the United States and South Africa, but it has already been approved by Canada.

To increase its production and meet demand, Johnson & Johnson has concluded several agreements in recent months with European laboratories and subcontractors, who will be responsible for its packaging: it is Sanofi in France, Catalent in Italy and IDT Biologika in Germany.

The active ingredient, which gives the vaccine its effectiveness, will come from the center that Johnson & Johnson has in Leiden, the Netherlands.

The European Union, which has ordered 200 million doses from the US laboratory (with an option for an additional 200 million additional doses), would receive around 55 million doses in the second quarter of the year.Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, explained in March.

However, the laboratory has not communicated the exact schedule of its deliveries.

For its part, Johnson & Johnson announced on Monday that will deliver up to 400 million doses of the covid-19 vaccine to African Union countries.

Under the agreement, 220 million doses of the immunizer, which require only one injection, will be distributed to 55 member countries of the African Union, where deliveries will begin in the third quarter of 2021.

Member countries can order an additional 180 million doses if needed, for a total of 400 million Johnson & Johnson vaccines shipped before 2022.

“We are committed to ensuring global and balanced access to covid-19 vaccines,” he said. Alex gorsky, CEO of the American company, in a statement.

Between mid-February and mid-December 2020, 2.8 million cases of coronavirus infections were recorded in the 55 countries of the African Union, only 3% of the global total, and 65,602 deaths were recorded, according to a study published in the British magazine The Lancet.

Johnson & Johnson announced in January that his vaccine was 66% effective against covid-19.

Unlike those of Pfizer and Moderna, based on the innovative messenger RNA technique, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is based on a viral vector, applying a technology already used by this company, in particular against the Ebola virus.

In addition, it uses another attenuated virus as a carrier, transformed to add genetic instructions for part of the virus responsible for covid-19. Once it reaches the cells, it produces a protein typical of SARS-CoV-2 (virus from the same family that caused severe acute respiratory syndrome in Southeast Asia in 2002-2004), which enables the system immune system to recognize it.

This vaccine is the first single-dose vaccine to receive authorization from the World Health Organization (WHO). The pharmaceutical group has also agreed to sell it at cost.

Another important advantage of the Johnson & Johnson immunizer is: can be stored at refrigerator temperature instead of freezers, considerably facilitating its distribution.

With information from AFP

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