World theory
Written by: Gigi Mao
2020-11-14 13:00
Last update date: 2020-11-14 13:00
The mRNA vaccine developed by Pfizer and the German biotech company BioNTech is the first to report success, claiming that the effective rate is as high as 90%, which can be regarded as the biggest good news for the global fight against the epidemic for nearly a year.
The effectiveness of this vaccine is surprising. It is also important that although Pfizer vaccines are basically sold out than Western countries, BioNTech is also cooperating with China Fosun Pharma, so the latter has the BioNTech new crown vaccine produced in Greater China And the supply of patents, if proven effective and approved, will provide a total of 10 million doses of vaccines to Hong Kong and Macau.
The mRNA vaccine BNT162 developed by Pfizer and BioNTech. The use of mRNA technology to produce vaccines has been a field that scientists have been focusing on since the 1990s. However, there has never been a successfully developed mRNA vaccine available. Therefore, this vaccine is not for the current new crown epidemic. , And even the development of human medicine is great news.
Ugur Sahin, the founder of BioNTech, is the second generation of Turkish immigrants from Germany.
(Reuters)
The first mRNA vaccine in human history?
Traditional vaccines are in the form of attenuated or inactivated viruses to induce the human immune system and produce antibody responses against the virus.
mRNA (messenger RNA) is a fragment of genetic material of synthetic pathogens, carrying the genetic instructions of viral spike protein, which can induce an immune response after entering the human body.
Spike protein is a substance that surrounds the surface of the coronavirus. It is harmless and also effective in inducing the body to produce immune responses and antibodies. Therefore, it is safer and easier to produce, but its effectiveness is unknown.
Because this type of nucleic acid vaccine can be developed only by knowing the genetic sequence of the virus, it saves the time of cultivating a large number of pathogens and the cumbersome process of isolating proteins, so the production speed is the fastest. Therefore, it is aimed at this new type of coronavirus. Many overseas and Chinese pharmaceutical companies are betting on the development of mRNA vaccines. Other promising mRNA vaccine candidates include the American pharmaceutical company Moderna, the German pharmaceutical company CureVac, and the Duke-National University of Singapore School of Medicine and the American pharmaceutical company Arcturus Therapeutics. Vaccine.
(Made in Hong Kong 01)
Turkish couples are eager to study mRNA to treat cancer
mRNA technology was originally developed for the treatment of cancer. By injecting genetic instructions, human cells produce viral proteins that can stimulate the immune system to systematically attack cancer cells.
The founders of BioNTech Ugur Sahin and his wife Özlem Türeci are no exception. The Turkish-German couple also focuses on the development of immune anti-cancer drugs. However, since BioNTech was founded 12 years ago, no immune anti-cancer drugs have been approved by the regulatory authorities.
In media reports, BNT162 is generally described as a vaccine developed by Pfizer. In fact, BNT162 has moved from BioNTech's laboratory to the clinic.
BioNTech uses its proprietary mRNA vaccine research and development platform for formula screening; and Pfizer, as a wealthy and established pharmaceutical company, has provided BioNTech with US$185 million in funding for vaccine research and development, and is responsible for organizing clinical trials and monitoring drugs in various countries The department applies for permission, and of course is also responsible for the subsequent vaccine production and delivery.
[New Crown Vaccine] Can the unprecedented mRNA vaccine become the hope of rescue?
BioNTech studies mRNA technology. If the BNT162 vaccine is successfully approved for use, it will be the first mRNA vaccine in human history.
(Reuters)
Ugur Sahin said in an interview with the media that the vaccine is currently undergoing phase 3 clinical testing for 44,000 people worldwide. According to the current clinical trials, it appears that BNT162 testers have no obvious or particularly serious side effects.
However, the "efficacy rate above 90%" announced by the two companies is not actually the result of a test of more than 40,000 people, but an independent evaluation agency sampled 94 cases. The conclusions after testing the samples, so the above are only preliminary data.
Pfizer also acknowledged that the effective rate may change. According to the requirements of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the new crown vaccine should be 50% effective, which means that BNT162 also seems to have a good chance of being approved.
Further reading: Pfizer and Russia vaccines have an effective rate of 90%. What is "effectiveness"?
Very low temperature transportation logistics and vaccination time must be mastered
As early as the results of the study published in early July, BNT162 can induce a strong CD8 T cell immune response in testers, and data shows that this Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine can trigger CD8 T cell response more than Moderna's mRNA-1273.
The current clinical test results have not proven that this vaccine is effective in preventing the spread of the new coronavirus, but it can prevent the infected from getting sick.
Although the overall clinical data is still incomplete, and there is no evidence that the BNT162 vaccine is effective for asymptomatic infections, BioNTech President Ugur Sahin expressed confidence in The Guardian:
If you ask whether we can end this pandemic with this vaccine, my answer is: Yes.
Because I believe that even if this vaccine only protects people with symptoms, it will have a significant effect.
At present, the biggest question about this vaccine actually lies in the logistics, transportation and storage equipment, because this vaccine needs to be stored in an extremely low temperature of minus 75 degrees Celsius. If it leaves the sub-zero environment, the maximum temperature is 2-8 degrees Celsius. It is only stored for five days, and the vaccine needs to be injected twice, with an interval of 3 weeks.
Therefore, the government must also master the logistics and the procedures for arranging public vaccination.
BioNTech is located at the headquarters in Mainz, Germany.
(Reuters)
US$153 per dose in Hong Kong or supplied by Fosun
Pfizer said that it will produce 1.3 billion doses of vaccine by the end of next year, but at this stage it has basically sold out more than Western countries. The British organization Global Justice Now pointed out that 82% of Pfizer's volume has been pre-sold to rich countries.
Based on past news, the United States has ordered 100 million doses at a price of US$19.5 (approximately 152 Hong Kong dollars) per dose, and an additional 500 million doses will be purchased; the European Union and the United Kingdom have ordered less than 300 million and 40 million doses respectively; Japan has also ordered 120 million doses .
Pfizer and BioNTech have never stated that the vaccine is priced in a non-profit-making manner, only that the pricing varies in different regions.
The British conservative media "The British Post" reported that it is estimated that the cost of buying each dose of Pfizer vaccine in the UK is 15 pounds (about 153 Hong Kong dollars), while the adenovirus vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca is estimated to only cost 2.23 pounds ( About 22.7 Hong Kong dollars) for one dose, the cost difference between the two is seven times.
At present, Oxford vaccine is also in the third phase of clinical testing, but no data on efficiency, side effects or adverse conditions have been released yet.
For this reason, although Pfizer and BioNTech vaccines are "the fastest" and seem to be safe and effective at present, the price and the "requirements" of logistics and transportation are not low, and whether Hong Kong "snap the goods" is also a question.
However, Shanghai Fosun Pharma and BioNTech have also entered into a licensing agreement to be authorized to develop vaccines in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan using BioNTech's mRNA technology platform (vaccine development in other regions is a collaboration between Pfizer and BioNTech).
If the vaccine proves to be effective and approved for use by the drug regulatory authority, Fosun Pharma will provide a total of 10 million doses of vaccine to Hong Kong and Macau.
However, Fosun Pharma’s BNT162b1 vaccine candidate is still in the first phase of clinical trials in the Mainland. The vaccination process of the first phase of subjects has been completed and is in the data analysis stage. Therefore, it is believed that there is still a long way to go before production and widespread vaccination. .
Illustration: Know more about the six major types of vaccines
Pfizer Announces Good News for Vaccines on the same day CEO sells shares worth US$5.56 million
[New crown pneumonia] Brazil resumes testing of Beijing Kexing vaccine denies that it is politically motivated to stop
[New Coronary Pneumonia] The United States has more than 100,000 new cases of vaccination for 7 consecutive days starting in December
New crown vaccine new crown pneumonia Pfizer international topic