J&J vaccine effective against delta in South African trial

Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine helps prevent serious illness in people infected with the delta variant, according to a trial involving nearly 480,000 health workers in South Africa.

The study, known as Sisonke’s, provides the first large-scale evidence that the J&J vaccine works against this dominant variant, according to Glenda Gray, co-leader of the trial. It’s probably more protective against the delta than with the previous beta strain, she said in a presentation on Friday.

The single-dose injection was 71% effective against hospitalization and up to 96% effective against death, she said. It has also demonstrated an eight month durability.

“These results show that there is no need for a booster yet,” said Gray, chairman of the South African Medical Research Council.

While the J&J vaccine is a key part of South Africa’s immunization plan, the country temporarily suspended its use in April after the United States decided to suspend the vaccine due to its link to rare clots blood. Other data has raised questions about the resistance of the shot against the highly contagious strain that has sparked new epidemics in countries like the United States and China.

A US study published last month showed that J & J’s shot produced relatively low levels of antibodies against delta. J&J said the analysis, which has not been published in a peer-reviewed journal, examined only one aspect of protection and failed to account for long-lasting responses among immune cells stimulated by the vaccine. Researchers at the drugmaker said their own data indicated that the vaccine neutralized the variant and that additional doses were not needed.

Deployment in Africa

Earlier this year, J&J agreed to provide up to 400 million vaccines to the African Union through the end of 2022, giving a boost to a continent behind most of the world’s countries in the race to l ‘inoculation. The single-injection dose requirement is seen as beneficial for Africa, where the distribution of vaccines to more than a billion widely dispersed people is likely to present a challenge.

In the study, the vaccine was administered to health workers at 120 sites in urban and rural areas from February 17 to May 17. Analysis of a third set of data is expected in the coming days.

There were two cases of thrombosis thrombocytopenia syndrome, a rare bleeding disorder, among the participants, both of which made a full recovery, Gray said.