A Brazilian doctor is voluntarily given an injection as part of phase 3 studies with a vaccine developed in July 2020 by the University of Oxford and British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca.
Nelson Almeida | AFP | Getty Images
LONDON – The coronavirus vaccine being developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca has been approved for emergency use in the UK, marking another step in the global fight against the pandemic.
The shot is expected to be rolled out next week and would be added to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine given to 600,000 people in the UK so far, according to government statistics.
In a statement, AstraZeneca said the first doses of the vaccine were released Wednesday “so that vaccinations can begin early in the new year.”
It added that it “aims to deliver millions of doses in the first quarter” as part of its agreement with the UK government to deliver up to 100 million doses in total.
British government minister Michael Gove said on Monday that the approval of the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine could accelerate the lifting of strict lockdowns in the country, effectively canceling Christmas festivities for millions of people.
The number of cases in London and Southern England has skyrocketed, with the pressure on hospitals being considerable. A new variant of coronavirus found in the UK is said to be more transmissible and has resulted in travel restrictions for people wishing to leave the country.
The Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine will allow the UK to significantly step up its vaccination program. It is also cheaper than others and does not need to be stored at ultra-low temperatures.
AstraZeneca’s vaccine is a viral vector inoculation based on an attenuated version of a cold virus that causes infections in chimpanzees. It is designed to prepare the immune system to attack the coronavirus, known as SARS-CoV-2, if it later infects the body.
Dr. Richard Horton, editor-in-chief of the medical journal The Lancet, told CNBC in December that these benefits meant it could be used more effectively around the world.
“The Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine is the vaccine at the moment that will be able to immunize the planet more effectively and faster than any other vaccine we have,” said Horton, adding that it was important to think about vaccine immunization on a global scale. “Because even if we immunize one country, the threat is that you will reintroduce the virus from another country that is not protected.”
Confusion over the data from the November trial sparked some criticism of AstraZeneca. Initial numbers suggested the vaccine could help reduce the spread of Covid-19 and prevent disease and death. That study also found that it had an effectiveness of 62% for trial participants who received two full doses, but 90% for a subgroup who received half a dose followed by a full dose.
Moncef Slaoui, Chief of Operation Warp Speed at the White House and others in the US have expressed concern about the age group tested, saying the 90% efficacy was only demonstrated for the lowest-risk group, which was 2,741 55 years old.
– CNBCs Sam Meredith contributed to this article.