The Lesser-Known Covid-19 Vaccines You Should Know
The vaccination campaign against Covid-19
is underway across the world, with more than 104 million doses having
been administered across 66 countries, according to recent data. The
vaccinations currently in use are produced by Pfizer and BioNTech,
Moderna, and AstraZeneca (in collaboration with the University of
Oxford). While these vaccine variations were the first ones to be
authorized for mass rollout by the World Health Organization, it seems
that they will soon be joined by Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine and possibly
China’s two front-runner vaccines - Sinovac and Sinopharm.
What do we know about these vaccines, and
how do they compare to the Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca vaccines?
Sputnik V proves 92% effective in a trial
The Russian vaccine was initially met with some controversy because it
was rolled out before the completion of the final trial. The trial
results recently published in the medical journal The Lancet deemed the
vaccine safe and 92% effective.
In a comment published alongside the paper, Professor Ian Jones and
Polly Roy stated, "The development of the Sputnik V vaccine has been
criticized for unseemly haste, corner-cutting, and an absence of
transparency. But the outcome reported here is clear and the scientific
principle of vaccination is demonstrated, which means another vaccine
can now join the fight to reduce the incidence of Covid-19".
The vaccine works in a similar way to the
Oxford/AstraZeneca jab developed in the UK. It exposes the body to the
virus’s genetic code, which helps the immune system recognize the virus
as a threat and fight it, all without the risk of becoming ill. In other
words, after the vaccination, the body starts producing antibodies
tailored to fight the novel coronavirus.
The main difference between the Sputnik V vaccine and the AstraZeneca
jab is that the former uses a slightly different formula of the vaccine
in the first and second vaccination dose. This is believed to provide
longer-lasting protection and helps boost the immune system more than
using the same version twice.
There were no severe reactions and deaths linked to the Russian vaccine
during the trial. The only side effects recorded were mild - a sore arm,
fatigue, and fever.
The study didn’t address the shot's effectiveness against the new
variants of the coronavirus. However, Russian officials have stated they
are continuously testing Sputnik V against new variants, and they
expect the shot to be just as potent against the new variants of the
virus.
In early January, the Russian Direct
Investment Fund, the organization that bankrolled the jab, said that
over 1 million Russians have already been vaccinated. Outside Russia,
Sputnik V has received Authorization in over a dozen countries,
including Belarus, Argentina, Bolivia, Serbia, Iran, and the UAE.
What do we know about the Sinovac and
Sinopharm Vaccines?
Meanwhile, China is making great strides to become a leading vaccination
provider, too. The two prominent vaccines from China are made by two
companies: Sinovac and Sinopharm. The former is a private company, and
the government funds the latter. Vaccines from both companies have been
granted conditional approval in China.
Both companies are developing inactivated vaccines that work in a
similar way to Sputnik V. This is a more traditional method of
vaccination, compared to the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, which use a
novel approach, mRNA. The main advantage of this tried and true form of
vaccination is that it can be stored in a standard refrigerator at 2-8
degrees Celsius, while Moderna's vaccine needs to be stored at -20°C and
Pfizer's vaccine requires an even lower temperature — -70°C.
This means that the Chinese and the Russian
vaccines could be a lot more useful in developing countries, as they
are more affordable, easy-to-transport, and don’t require advanced
storage facilities.
What about their efficacy? At this point in
time, it’s hard to determine. One Chinese study published in The Lancet
only has information from the first and the second phase trials of
Sinovac. Interim data from late-stage trials in Turkey and Indonesia
showed that the vaccine was 91.25% and 65.3% effective respectively.
Researchers in Brazil initially said it was 78% effective in their
clinical trials, but in January of 2021, they revised that figure and
stated that the vaccine was 50.4% effective after including more data in
their calculations.
As for Sinopharm, phase three trial results from late December showed
that it was 79% effective. However, the United Arab Emirates, which
approved the Sinopharm vaccine earlier this month, said that the vaccine
was 86% effective, according to the interim results of their phase
three trial.
While there is still more information to be gathered, one thing is
clear: if the world wants to take the global pandemic under control, we
will need a number of vaccines to work. That’s exactly why so many eyes
are trained on the Chinese and Russian candidates. The recent promising
news, especially regarding the latter, is indeed cause for cautious
optimism.