“Not clear” whether booster shots for the Covid-19 vaccine are needed

AstraZeneca is not yet sure whether a third dose of its Covid-19 vaccine will be needed for continued protection against the virus, the company’s CEO told CNBC on Thursday.

Speaking to CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe”, Pascal Soriot said the company did not have a “specific answer” on whether booster injections would be needed.

“There are two dimensions to this immunity: antibodies [which] decreases over time, but the second very important dimension of vaccination is what is called T cells. They tend to protect people from serious disease, but they also provide durability, ”explained Soriot.

“With the technology that we are using, we have a very high production of T cells. We hope that we can have a durable vaccine that protects for a long time. So, we do not yet know if we will need a third booster. or not., only time will tell. “

T cells are a type of white blood cell that plays different roles in the body’s defense against an invading virus. For example, they can attack the pathogen or support different white blood cells in the production of antibodies.

Antibodies prevent viruses from invading cells, but don’t last as long as T cells.

Soriot added that the only way to know if booster shots would really be needed was to see if the vaccine’s effectiveness worsened over time.

“We know that [our vaccine] has a drop in antibodies [over time] – we haven’t seen a drop in efficacy yet, but it’s a bit early to judge, only time will tell, and I hope T cells will provide this long-lasting, long-term protection. “

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla told CNBC’s “The Exchange” on Wednesday that the company was “very, very confident” that a third dose of its vaccine would provide sufficient immunity to protect against the spreading delta variant. faster from Covid.

Bourla’s comments came after a study found that the effectiveness of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine decreased by an average of 6% every two months, and that the vaccine was most effective between a week and two months after receiving the second dose of the vaccine.

Bourla also told CNBC on Wednesday that the vaccine’s effectiveness fell to around 84% four to six months after the second dose.

AstraZeneca’s revenue from its Covid-19 vaccine reached nearly $ 1.2 billion in the first half, the company said Thursday.

Revenue from vaccine sales helped the Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical giant increase its total revenue for the first half of the year 23% year-on-year to $ 15.5 billion, AstraZeneca said in its earnings report.

Its revenue from the Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine in the second quarter more than tripled from the previous three months.

Excluding vaccine revenue, the company’s half-year revenue increased 14% from the first half of 2020.

Following its acquisition of US pharmaceutical company Alexion, AstraZeneca has updated its annual forecast, forecasting an increase in total revenue by a small percentage of twenty. Revenues from its Covid-19 vaccine have not been factored into the guidance, given “the increased risks and uncertainties associated with the effects of Covid-19, including the impact of potential new drugs for Covid-19 in clinical development ”.

The company also noted that variations in its financial performance could continue from quarter to quarter.

Nearly 4 billion Covid-19 vaccines have been administered worldwide, according to data collected by Bloomberg.

According to Our World in Data, vaccination programs have now started in 214 countries and territories, most of which have approved the use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.