Pfizer: Vaccine is not the only measure to contain covid-19 6:15
(CNN) -
Pfizer said Thursday that it is seeing a decline in the immunity of its coronavirus vaccine and says it is redoubling its efforts to develop a booster dose that protects people from the variants.
"As seen from real-world data published by the Israel Ministry of Health, the efficacy of the vaccine in preventing both infection and symptomatic disease has decreased six months after vaccination, although the efficacy in the prevention of serious illness remains high, "the company said in an emailed statement to CNN.
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"Furthermore, during this period the delta variant is becoming the dominant variant in Israel, as well as in many other countries. These findings are consistent with an ongoing analysis of the phase 3 study of the companies," he added.
"Although protection against severe disease remained high for the full six months, we expect a decrease in efficacy against symptomatic disease over time and the continued emergence of variants. Based on the totality of the data available to date. To date, Pfizer and BioNTech believe that a third dose may be beneficial between 6 and 12 months after the second dose to maintain the highest levels of protection. "
Israel's Health Ministry said in a statement earlier this week that it had found that the efficacy of Pfizer's vaccine had dropped from more than 90% to around 64% as the delta or B variant spread. 1,617 .two.
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The company said booster doses of its vaccine, developed with BioNTech, produce levels of neutralizing antibodies that are five to 10 times higher than those produced after two doses.
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"The companies hope to publish more definitive data soon, as well as in a peer-reviewed journal, and plan to submit the data to the FDA, EMA and other regulatory authorities in the coming weeks," Pfizer said in a statement.
Pfizer also notes that it is developing a new formulation for a booster dose that can further protect people from the new variants.
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"While Pfizer and BioNTech believe that a third dose of BNT162b2 has the potential to preserve the highest levels of protective efficacy against all currently known variants, including delta, companies remain vigilant and are developing an updated version of the vaccine against Pfizer-BioNTech's covid-19 focused on the complete delta variant protein, "the company said.
Current vaccines target a part of the spike protein, the part of the virus that it uses to adhere to cells.
"The first batch of mRNA for the assay has already been manufactured at BioNTech's facilities in Mainz, Germany. The companies anticipate clinical studies to begin in August, subject to regulatory approvals."
A Pfizer spokesperson told CNN that the company plans to seek an emergency use approval of the booster dose from the FDA in August.
covid-19 vaccine