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Elisa Granato is one of the volunteers who was given the Oxford vaccine
The Oxford coronavirus vaccine shows a strong immune response in adults between the ages of 60 and 70, giving hope that it can protect the age groups most exposed to the virus.
The researchers say the Lancet phase two results, based on 560 healthy adult volunteers, are “encouraging.”
They are also looking into whether the vaccine prevents people from developing Covid-19 in larger phase three studies.
The first results of this crucial step are expected in the coming weeks.
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Three vaccines – Pfizer-BioNTech, Sputnik, and Moderna – have already reported good preliminary data from phase three studies, one of which suggests that 94% of people over 65 could be protected against Covid 19.
The Oxford data comes from an earlier stage, which verifies the safety of the vaccine and the body’s response to it, but in the long run this vaccine is likely to be easier to distribute because it does not need to be stored at very temperatures. low.
The UK government has ordered more doses of the Oxford vaccine, manufactured by AstraZeneca, than any other vaccine – 100 million doses – compared to 40 million doses for Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and five million for Moderna vaccine.
Copyright of the photo, Getty Images
Professor Andrew Pollard, head of the study at the University of Oxford, told the BBC he was “absolutely satisfied with the results” which show a strong immune response “even in people over 70”.
As to whether the vaccine protects people against Covid-19, he said “they weren’t there yet”, but the data would likely be released “before Christmas”.
According to Professor Pollard, there is no “competition” with other vaccines and many more must be effective.
“We will need all of these vaccines to protect people around the world,” he adds.
The challenge in developing a covid-19 vaccine is to get the body to defend itself against the virus, regardless of the person’s age.
Because the immune system in older people is weaker, vaccines tend not to work as well as they do in younger people.
The results of these Oxford University studies, published in The Lancet, suggest this is not a problem.
They show that adults aged 56 to 69 and over 70 have an immune response similar to that of young adults aged 18 to 55.
Protect the most vulnerable
Copyright of the photo, Sean Elias Oxford Vaccine Team
Samples of the vaccine used during the test
Dr Maheshi Ramasamy, a researcher with the Oxford Vaccine Group, explains that “the next step will be to see if this translates into protection against the disease itself.”
Two weeks after the second dose, over 99% of the participants had neutralizing antibody responses. They were people of all ages.
T-cell response – another measure of the quality of the immune system’s response – peaks two weeks after the first dose of the vaccine, regardless of age.
“The robust antibody and T cell responses seen in the elderly in our study are encouraging,” concludes Dr. Ramasamy.
“The populations most at risk of serious disease from Covid-19 include people with existing health problems and the elderly.
“We hope our vaccine will help protect some of the most vulnerable people in society, but more research is needed before we can be sure.”
Copyright of the photo, David Cheskin / PA cable
Older adults are also less likely to experience side effects, which are usually mild.
And there were no serious safety concerns with the vaccine, called ChAdOx1 nCov-2019.
The trial volunteers were divided into groups and received one or two doses of the vaccine or a sham injection. Their immune system reaction was assessed on the day they received the injection, then one, two and four weeks after the two doses.
The Oxford vaccine consists of a weakened version of a chimpanzee cold virus (known as adenovirus), which has been modified to not develop in humans.
Work on the vaccine began in January and was completed in less than three months. The first human trials – the first in Europe – began in April in Oxford.
The third phase of vaccine trials, which aims to determine their effectiveness in protecting people from Covid-19, began at the end of August and is still ongoing.
When data from this stage is submitted to regulatory authorities, reviewed and approved, the vaccine can be used around the world.
The Oxford vaccine is expected to be easier to produce globally than Pfizer and Moderna’s, and the university is committed to making hundreds of millions of doses available to developing countries.
The UK’s massive order for this vaccine means that if it were approved before Christmas and available early next year, it would make a big difference in how quickly Covid vaccines could be given to people in the priority groups.
The announcement of this vaccine comes during a debate in the UK about whether people will be able to see their families around Christmas.
Professor Andrew Hayward – director of the UCL Institute of Epidemiology and Health Care and a member of the government’s scientific advisory group on emergencies – said BBC family reunions at Christmas would present “substantial” risks.
“We are on the verge of being able to protect these elderly people, whom we love, with vaccination,” he told Radio 4’s Today program.
“It would be tragic to waste this opportunity … trying to get back to normal during the holidays.”
He added: “My personal opinion is that we put too much emphasis on an almost normal Christmas.”
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