Scientists fear shortages because other vaccines are not approved, forcing Pfizer-BioNTech to fill the gap.
BioNTech is fully working with partner Pfizer to boost production of their COVID-19 vaccine, its founders have said, warning there would be gaps in supply until other vaccines were rolled out.
The German biotech startup has led the vaccine race, but the shot has been slow in the European Union due to the bloc’s relatively slow health regulator approval and the small size of the order placed by Brussels.
The delays have caused a stir in Germany, where some regions had to temporarily close vaccination centers days after the launch of a vaccination campaign on December 27.
“Things don’t look good at the moment – a gap is emerging because there is a lack of other approved vaccines and we need to fill the gap with our own vaccine,” BioNTech CEO Ugur Sahin told German weekly Der Spiegel in an interview. . .
A shot of Moderna is expected to be approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) on Jan. 6.
German Health Minister Jens Spahn has urged the EMA to also rapidly approve a vaccine developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca and approved by Britain this week. The EU timetable for that treatment remains uncertain.
Sahin said the BioNTech / Pfizer vaccine, which uses messenger RNA to instruct the human immune system to fight the coronavirus, should be able to deal with a variant first discovered in Britain that appears to be more contagious.
“We are testing whether our vaccine can neutralize this variant as well, and will know more soon,” he said.
When asked about how to deal with a strong mutation, he said it would be possible to modify the vaccine as needed within six weeks – although such new treatments may require additional regulatory approvals.
New production line planned
Sahin founded BioNTech with his wife, Oezlem Tuereci, the company’s chief medical officer. Both criticized the EU’s decision to distribute orders in the expectation that more vaccines would be approved soon.
The United States ordered 600 million doses of the BioNTech / Pfizer vaccine in July, while the EU waited until November to place an order of half that size.
“At some point it became clear that it would not be possible to deliver so quickly,” Tuereci told Spiegel. “By then it was already too late to place follow-up orders.”
BioNTech hopes to launch a new production line in Marburg, Germany, in February, which could produce 250 million doses in the first half of the year, Sahin said.
Discussions are underway with contract manufacturers about boosting production and there should be more clarity by the end of January, he added.
Sahin also said BioNTech would make its vaccine, which must be stored at about minus 70 degrees Celsius (minus 94 Fahrenheit), easier to handle.
A next-generation vaccine that can be stored at higher temperatures could be ready by the end of summer.