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The cold storage requirements for the first successful trial of a potential coronavirus vaccine raise questions about who might get it, if it’s approved and when.
And US magazine “Time” cites experts that the Pfizer vaccine may not be available to everyone, at least not immediately. It is likely that large medical centers will have the necessary resources for ultra-cold storage.
But people who do not have access to these facilities, such as those living in rural areas, nursing homes and developing countries, may have to wait for other vaccines in development.
Pfizer vaccine should be stored at a temperature of 70 degrees below zero and it cannot be warmed up more than four times during its journey from the place of manufacture to the people who will receive it.
The Pfizer vaccine, which has not yet been approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration but is said to be 90% effective in preventing Covid-19 disease, uses genetic material called mRNA. And if not stored at extremely cold temperatures, this substance can decompose, rendering the vaccine unusable.
If the Pfizer vaccine is stored at minus 70 degrees, it can last up to six months. But many hospitals, community doctor’s offices, and pharmacies don’t have refrigerators, the lowest price is $ 10,000, and they are expensive to operate due to their high energy consumption.
It is not possible to modify the current refrigerants to achieve the temperatures required to store the vaccine, explains Paula Cannon, professor of microbiology at the University of Southern California, adding: “It would be like going from a Fiat to a Tundra truck. “
Dr William Moss, executive director of the International Vaccine Access Center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, says there could also be a shortage of the type of pharmaceutical glass needed to make vials capable of withstanding temperatures. cold.
The New York-based Corning Glass Company won a $ 204 million government grant last June to increase production of its glass, made without the chemical element boron.
The distribution of the vaccine will also be difficult, as it must remain frozen during transport. But Pfizer built a storage container that, with the help of dry ice, can keep doses cold for up to 10 days during transport, without additional freezing equipment.
Regularly filling containers with dry ice can ensure that doses are kept for an additional 15 days, but also depends on how often the containers are opened and how long they are opened.
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