1/29—Novavax says vaccine 89% efficacy in UK, 60% in South Africa
Novavax COVID-19 Vaccine Demonstrates 89.3% Efficacy in UK Phase 3 Trial
[Press release.] The UK study enrolled more than 15,000 participants between 18-84 years of age, including 27% over the age of 65. The first interim analysis is based on 62 cases, of which 56 cases of COVID-19 were observed in the placebo group versus 6 cases observed in the NVX-CoV2373 group, resulting in a point estimate of vaccine efficacy of 89.3% (95% CI: 75.2 – 95.4). Of the 62 cases, 61 were mild or moderate, and 1 was severe (in placebo group). In the South Africa Phase 2b clinical trial, 60% efficacy (95% CI: 19.9 – 80.1) for the prevention of mild, moderate and severe COVID-19 disease was observed in the 94% of the study population that was HIV-negative. Twenty-nine cases were observed in the placebo group and 15 in the vaccine group. This study enrolled over 4,400 patients. One severe case occurred in the placebo group and all other cases were mild or moderate. Approximately 1/3 of the patients enrolled were seropositive, demonstrating prior COVID-19 infection at baseline thought to have been caused by the original COVID-19 strain. These data suggest that prior infection with COVID-19 may not completely protect against subsequent infection by the South Africa escape variant.
Johnson & Johnson Announces Single-Shot Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine Candidate Met Primary Endpoints in Interim Analysis of its Phase 3 ENSEMBLE Trial
[Press release.] Vaccine candidate 85% effective overall in preventing severe disease; 66% effective at preventing moderate to severe covid-19, 28 days after vaccination. The level of protection was 72% in the United States, 66% in Latin America and 57% in South Africa. Single-shot compatible with standard vaccine distribution channels provides important tool in pandemic setting.
Coronavirus: Germany recommends AstraZeneca vaccine for under-65s only
[Media report.] Germany's vaccine commission STIKO said on Thursday that AstraZeneca's COVID-19 jab should only be administered to people aged 64 and under. "There is currently insufficient data to assess the efficacy of the vaccine for persons aged 65 years and older," the scientific committee said in the resolution made available by the German Health Ministry.
Who Goes First? Government Leaders and Prioritization of SARS-CoV-2 Vaccines
The vice president, Senate majority leader, House speaker, surgeon general, and members of Congress were among the first people vaccinated against Covid-19 in the United States. The president-elect, incoming first lady, vice president-elect, and her husband were also vaccinated in the first phase. Yet prioritization frameworks created by expert panels and adopted by states do not grant government leaders any special status, and giving them priority raises important questions of fairness and transparency.
Neutralization of SARS-CoV-2 lineage B.1.1.7 pseudovirus by BNT162b2 vaccine–elicited human sera [Pfizer]
This [UK] variant has an unusually large number of mutations with 10 amino acid changes in the spike protein, raising concerns that its recognition by neutralizing antibodies may be affected. Here, we tested SARS-CoV-2-S pseudoviruses bearing either the Wuhan reference strain or the B.1.1.7 lineage spike protein with sera of 40 participants who were vaccinated in a previously reported trial with the mRNA-based COVID-19 [Pfizer] vaccine BNT162b2. The immune sera had slightly reduced but overall largely preserved neutralizing titers against the B.1.1.7 lineage pseudovirus. These data indicate that the B.1.1.7 lineage will not escape BNT162b2-mediated protection.
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