COVID-19: Pfizer, Moderna testing vaccine efficacy against new virus strain in UK

After having shipped 2.9 million doss of COVID-19 vaccines across US recently, pharmaceutical firm Pfizer anunced on December 21 that it is w testing its vaccines for new variant of coronavirus that mutated and spread across parts of England, and South Africa. Similarly, Moderna which received US FDA authorisation for emergency use of its mRNA vaccine said in a statement that it was performing tests on vaccines to see if it induced immunity for more contagious strain described by UK. According to CNN, two companies were w dedicated to extensive research and generating data about how well ir vaccine doses neutralized coronavirus’ gemic variant in blood samples of participants. 

“Based on data to date, we expect that Moderna vaccine-induced immunity would be protective against variants recently described in UK,” ANI reported, citing Moderna’s official statement to CNN. “We will be performing additional tests in coming weeks to confirm this expectation,” it furr read. Earlier, British scientists, in a detailed report, informed UK PM Boris Johnson’s administration about new mutated virus geme suspected to belong to B.1.1.7 line, which is 70 percent more contagious that had spread at an extremely faster rate across Kent, souastern England with doubling time of 7 days in some parts. 

Read: New Strain Of COVID From UK Has Increased Transmissibility, t Severity: Health Ministry

Read: US Congresswoman AOC Gets COVID-19 Vaccine On Instagram Live, Documents Entire Process

BioNtech CEO has ‘scientific confidence’ 

German pharmaceutical company BioNTech’s CEO Ugur Sahin told a news conference that it is “highly likely that immune response by Pfizer vaccine also can deal with new virus variants.” His comments were made just a day after European Union approved Pfizer vaccines for emergency use. Sahin said, that while re was scientific evidence at moment and research was being carried out into obtaining more information about mutated geme of coronavirus, BioNtech had ‘scientific confidence’ that protein on UK variant was 99 percent similar to SARS-CoV-2 variant. "But we will kw it only if experiment is done and we will need about two weeks from w to get data,"  BioNtech CEO was quoted by PTI as saying. " likelihood that our vaccine works is relatively high,” he anunced. 

Read: WHO: New Coronavirus Variant t 'out Of Control' But Can't Be Left 'to Its Own Devices'

Read: UK Virus Strain: London Returnee's Sample To Go To NIV For Gemic Analysis