Pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca said it could take between six to nine months to produce Covid-19 vaccines that are effective against new variants of the virus.
A six-month turnaround for an updated vaccine would represent a vast improvement over traditional vaccine development timelines, The Guardian reported on Thursday.
"Work on the variants hasn't started today, it started weeks and months ago, as soon as those new variants were identified and... we are aiming to be in the clinic in the spring, with next generation vaccines for the new variants," said Sir Mene Pangalos, Executive Vice-President, BioPharmaceuticals R&D at AstraZeneca.
Pangalos added that the jabs could be available to the public by the autumn, assuming the regulatory bodies are satisfied with using studies into the body's immune response to the vaccine as the route to approval.
The company's vaccine, developed jointly with the University of Oxford, remains effective against the original virus and at least one variant, first discovered in Kent, England. But preliminary findings in a small-scale trial prompted South Africa to limit its use while it ascertains its efficacy against the variant that emerged there, the report said.
A number of Covid vaccines have shown lower efficacy in trials where the South Africa variant predominates -- earlier this week preliminary trials revealed the Oxford-AstraZeneca jab provided little protection against mild to moderate infection, although it is still expected to protect against severe disease and death.
It has recently emerged that some cases of the Kent variant have a mutation also found in the South African variant, a development that scientists have cautioned needs to be taken seriously, not least since the mutation -- known as E484K -- has been linked to the ability for the South African variant to evade protection offered by some current Covid vaccines, the report said.
Panaglos said tests need to be carried out on the Kent variant with the E484K mutation.
--IANS
vc/bg
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dear Reader,
Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.
We, however, have a request.
As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.
Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.
Digital Editor
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU