COVID-19 vaccines would provide protection even as virus evolves, says Oxford expert

COVID-19 vaccines might offer protection against the severe disease even as coronavirus variants evolve to better allow continued transmission between people, the head of the Oxford Vaccine Group Andrew Pollard said on February 3. Speaking to BBC, Pollard asserted that there was more about the virus’s survival than it being able to infect people. Oxford University in collaboration, with AstraZeneca, had developed its mRNA based vaccine which has now been approved across the EU, UK and many other nations.

Meanwhile, questioned about the effectiveness of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine on the new variants, Pollards stressed the vaccine still protected against the lethal respiratory disease. Elaborating further, he said that SARS-CoV-2 virus was currently making changes that allow it to avoid human immune responses and continue transmitting further.

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Therefore, it was highly likely that the virus would find ways of adapting and continue to pass between people. However, it did not mean that people “won't still have protection against severe disease” as the virus was much more about being able to continue to survive, rather than trying to cause harm to the humankind. As per the latest reports, there have been over five new mutations in the coronavirus. 

Earlier, French President Emmanuel Macron said that the vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University appeared not to be effective for people over 65 years. Speaking to media reporters, Macron asserted that the viral vector vaccine was “quasi-ineffective for people over 65.” His remarks hours before the European Union (EU) granted conditional marketing authorization (CMA) for AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. Developed by Oxford University and British Swedish firm AstraZeneca, the vaccine is reported to have 80 per cent efficacy, as reported by Bloomberg. However, Macron said that there was "very little information" available for the vaccine developed by the collaboration, indicating scepticisms.

Vaccine approved by EU

AstraZeneca has already been granted conditional marketing authorisation (CMA) for its COVID-19 vaccine by the European Union regulators. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) reviewed the trial data and unanimously recommended the vaccine for use in adults aged 18 years or older. The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the EMA has recommended the use of two doses of AstraZeneca's vaccine in adults at 4 to 12 weeks interval. 

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Image: AP