Corona vaccine needs another material to save the world … what is it?

The Al-Jazeera website has published an article on a specific substance needed for use with the emerging coronavirus vaccine that causes Covid-19 disease, which is dry ice, and the password is cooling.

According to the site, for the vaccine from the American company “Pfizer” and “BioNTech” Germany, it must be kept at a temperature of about minus 70 degrees Celsius during transport, and this temperature is 50 degrees Celsius colder than any other vaccine. currently used. .

On the other hand, the vaccine from the American company “Moderna” can be stored in freezers normally available in pharmacies, and in the refrigerator for 30 days, but the problem is that the quantity of doses of modern vaccine risks being lower than the Pfizer vaccine available in the next year, And this according to a report from “CNN” (CNN). Pfizer plans to ship up to 1.3 billion doses next year.

And since vaccines need to stay cold, this will be a problem for developing countries, and perhaps even developed countries.

And Pfizer and Biontec have announced that their joint vaccine is 95% effective in preventing Covid-19, based on comprehensive results from a large-scale clinical trial. Moderna announced similar results (94.5% efficacy) for a vaccine based on the same technology.

What is dry ice?
Dry ice is the solid form of carbon dioxide, at a temperature of about -78 ° C, and is used as a cooling agent.

Why is dry ice so important to save Corona vaccine?
The Pfizer vaccine is made up of the genetic material of the emerging corona virus, called “messenger RNA” or “mRNA”, to program a person’s cells to make many copies of a part of the virus, these copies trigger alarms in the immune system. it spurs to attack if the real virus tries to invade.

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This material is encapsulated in tiny fat globules and is very brittle, requiring it to be stored at this low temperature to maintain its stability, according to a report from USA Today (usedday).

On Wednesday, Biontech CEO Ugur Shaheen acknowledged the issue of temperature control and said in a statement to CNN: “We are working on a formula that will allow us to ship the vaccine even at room temperature. We believe in the second half of 2021. we’ll be standing “. We have come up with a formula that can be compared to any other type of vaccine. “

Pfizer plans to ship up to 1.3 billion doses next year, which will require a lot of dry ice.

According to current data, Pfizer has developed a “thermal charger” – according to a report published by “CBSNews” – to transport and store its vaccine, which is a bag-sized shipping box containing dry ice, along with a device that contains the GPS. “The GPS, which continuously monitors the temperature, and each” cooler “houses no less than a thousand doses of vaccine.

Therefore, some fear that the world’s dry ice plants will not be able to meet the needs that the countries of the world will need to keep cold chains and distribution cool.
Even freezers
The vaccine can be stored in ultra-cold freezers, which are found in major medical centers and hospitals, but are not available in doctors’ offices or health centers in rural areas, and this is also true for developing countries.

Medical ultra-cold freezers aren’t cheap either – for example, an upright freezer the size of a large household refrigerator costs around $ 25,000.

Also, handling these freezers isn’t easy; Opening the door of this freezer is not like opening the refrigerator door to eat a snack, as soon as the door is opened a wave of mist appears, and gloves and long sleeves must be worn to protect the freezer from scalding from the unit itself or by the objects inside.
Even freezers
The vaccine can be stored in ultra-cold freezers, which are found in major medical centers and hospitals, but are not available in doctors’ offices or health centers in rural areas, and this is also true for developing countries.

Medical ultra-cold freezers are also not cheap – for example, an upright freezer the size of a large household refrigerator costs around $ 25,000.

Also, handling these freezers isn’t easy; Opening the door of this freezer is not like opening the refrigerator door for a snack, as soon as the door is opened a wave of fog appears, and gloves and long sleeves must be worn to protect the freezer from scalding from the unit itself or from the objects inside.