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Vaccination in a child
Photo: Elva Etienne / Getty Images
Biontech and Pfizer have started studies on the effectiveness and safety of their corona vaccine in children under the age of twelve.
So far, the Covid-19 vaccine, which the Mainz-based company developed together with the US manufacturer, has been conditionally approved for adolescents aged 16 and over.
Children between the ages of eleven and six months were now included in the studies.
Pfizer and Biontech reported that the first subjects received the first doses on Thursday.
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The review is part of the ongoing Phase 1, 2 and 3 studies that will review the safety, tolerability and immunogenicity of the Biontech-Pfizer vaccine, BNT162b2.
If all criteria are met and the authorities approve approval, the vaccine for younger children could be available in early 2022.
The vaccine is already being tested on children between the ages of 12 and 15 as part of phase 3.
2,259 children in this age group are taking part in this study, which started in July.
The data are promising and should be published soon, report Biontech and Pfizer.
First promising data
The company's vaccine is based on mRNA technology.
During vaccination, the blueprint for typical virus proteins enters the body packed in a fatty envelope.
The body cells then produce the virus proteins, the immune system reacts to them and forms antibodies.
Biontech / Pfizer test three different dosages in younger children.
The aim is to first set a dose at which the agent is also effective in the bodies of smaller children, i.e. offers protection against Covid 19 disease and at the same time does not cause excessive vaccination reactions.
Vaccination reactions indicate that the body is dealing with the vaccine.
Pain at the injection site, fatigue and headache are some of the most common complaints.
They are harmless and disappear on their own, but should not be too violent or stronger than necessary for good vaccination protection.
Younger people's immune systems are often more responsive to vaccines, making vaccine responses more pronounced.
The competition is also testing
Biontech / Pfizer competitors Moderna and AstraZeneca have also already started testing their Covid-19 vaccines on younger children.
The US manufacturer Johnson & Johnson plans to follow suit soon.
AstraZeneca is studying the efficacy and safety of its product in the UK on 300 children between 6 and 17 years of age.
Like Johnson & Johnson's, the vaccine is based on vector technology.
Instead of being packaged in fat droplets, the genetic blueprint of typical virus proteins is transported into the body with the help of a virus that is harmless to humans.
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The hope in vaccinating children is also that they could be protected permanently.
"We could give children immunity and possibly give them an extra boost until the end of their life," said Sara Gilbert of Oxford University in February.
Your research team helped develop the AstraZeneca vaccine and is responsible for the children's study.
Moderna also started testing its mRNA vaccine on 12 to 17 year olds in the USA at the beginning of December.
The company will initially have these results checked by the European Medicines Agency (Ema).
Studies with younger children should then take place.
This vaccine is also unlikely to be available to the younger target group until 2022.
Children rarely get seriously ill, but pass the virus on
As a rule, children are spared severe Covid-19 diseases, but there are also isolated cases of serious diseases and even deaths.
In addition, infected children can pass on the novel coronavirus.
In Germany, those under 16 make up around 15 percent of the population.
This is not an insignificant proportion when you consider that taking into account new, more contagious virus variants, around 80 percent of infections would have to be prevented in order to stop the exponential spread of the virus.
According to data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the seven-day incidence in children up to 14 years of age was over 100 in the past week, which is similar to the population average.
For 15 to 19 year olds, the value was even higher at 139.
Before they were approved, the Covid-19 vaccines were tested primarily with a view to their ability to prevent diseases.
In the meantime, however, it is becoming apparent that they also significantly reduce the risk of infections with the Sars-CoV-2 virus and thus its spread.
jme / AFP / dpa
