United States surpasses 27 million cases of Covid-19

South African health officials said on Sunday they were suspending the rollout of AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine in the country after a study showed it offered reduced protection against the Covid-19 variant identified for the first time there.

In a briefing on Sunday, South Africa’s Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize said the suspension would be temporary while scientists determine how to most effectively deploy the AstraZeneca vaccine. Mkhize said South Africa will move forward with the rollout of vaccines made by Pfizer / BioNTech and Johnson & Johnson.

The first data released on Sunday suggests that two doses of the Oxford / AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine offered only “minimal protection” against mild and moderate Covid-19 of the variant first identified in South Africa.

The study, which has not been published, included around 2,000 volunteers with an average age of 31; about half got the vaccine and the other half got a placebo, which doesn’t matter.

Viral neutralization against the B.1.351 variant was “significantly reduced” compared to the earlier strain of coronavirus, the researchers said in a press release. The efficacy of the vaccine against severe Covid-19, hospitalization and death has not been evaluated.

Details of the study conducted by researchers at the South African University of the Witwatersrand and others, as well as the University of Oxford, were shared in a press release. The results have been peer reviewed and a preprint will be released soon, Oxford said.

AstraZeneca Response: In a statement released on Sunday, a spokesperson for AstraZeneca said the company “is working closely with the South African Department of Health on how best to support assessment for severe disease B variant. 1,351 and start bringing this vaccine to South Africa. People should be successful. “

The statement said the company believes its vaccine will still protect against serious illnesses from the new B.1.351 variant, especially when the dosing interval is eight to 12 weeks.

In a previous statement, the company said it was working with the University of Oxford to adapt the vaccine to the B.1.351 variant so “it’s ready for fall delivery if needed.”

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