Sinopharm’s COVID-19 vaccine remained active against the S. Africa variant, effect reduced – laboratory study

BEIJING (Reuters) – Two COVID-19 vaccines from Chinese companies, including Sinopharm, induced immunity to a highly transmissible coronavirus variant first found in South Africa, but their effect appeared weaker, a small-scale lab study released Tuesday was released.

Variants of the virus have raised concerns that they could weaken the effects of vaccines and treatments developed before their emergence.

Twelve serum samples each taken from recipients of two vaccines developed by a subsidiary of China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm) and a unit of Chongqing Zhifei Biological Products retained neutralizing activity against the South African variant, their researchers said in a paper.

The paper was written by researchers at Sinopharm’s affiliated Beijing Institute of Biological Products, the Institute of Microbiology of Chinese Academy of Sciences, which is developing a candidate together with the Zhifei unit, and two other Chinese agencies.

However, the activity of the samples against the variant was weaker than against the original virus and another variant that is currently spreading worldwide, according to the paper published on the BioRxiv website prior to the peer review. bit.ly/3rfr2UZ

The reduction in activity “must be taken into account because of its impact on the clinical efficacy of these vaccines,” they said.

The Sinopharm vaccine is approved for general public use in China and is also used in several other countries, including the United Arab Emirates. The Zhifei shot is in late stage clinical trials in China and abroad.

Preliminary clinical trial data on vaccines from Novavax Inc and Johnson & Johnson also showed that they were significantly less effective in preventing COVID-19 in subjects in South Africa, where the powerful new variant is widespread.