COVID-19: Moderna says immunity created by its vaccine lasts a year

US pharmaceutical company Moderna Inc on January 11 said that immunity from its COVID-19 vaccine should last at least a year. Moderna’s mRNA vaccine has shown 94 per cent efficacy against highly-infectious disease in final phase of clinical trial. While speaking at JP Morgan Healthcare conference, drugmaker said that it is confident that its messenger RNA techlogy it used was well suited to deploy a vaccine based on new variant of coronavirus which has emerged in a handful of countries. 

Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine is administered in two doses, 28 days apart. Its mRNA-1273 techlogy uses syntic nRNA to mimic surface of coronavirus and teach immune system to recognise and neutralise it. On Monday, US-based company said that in December it would run tests to confirm vaccine’s activity against any strain. 

Furr, drugmaker also informed that it is expected to deliver between 600 million doses and one billion doses of its vaccine in 2021. Moderna has forecasted vaccine-related sales of $11.7 billion for year, based on advance purchase agreements signed with governments across globe. During conference, Moderna’s CEO Stéphane Bancel said that his team feels “very comfortable” with track record y have w. Bancel reiterated that Moderna is on track to deliver at least 600 million doses. 

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Moderna’s vaccine ‘safe and effective’ 

Meanwhile, UK, EU, Canada and US have already approved Moderna vaccine based on results of its trials. According to a study published in New England Journal of Medicine, Moderna’s vaccine has demonstrated 94.1 per cent efficacy in preventing highly-infectious disease. scientists also ted that severe cases occurred only among volunteers who received placebo.

Moderna's vaccine is easier to transport and handle if compared to Pfizer-BioNTech because it doesn't require to be stored at extreme temperatures. European Medical ncy (EMA) has said that a “very large clinical trial” proved vaccine is safe and effective and also showed efficacy of 90.9% in people with chronic lung disease, heart disease, obesity, liver disease, diabetes, or HIV infection. 

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