Russia's COVID-19 vaccine showed antibody response in initial trials

[rooster59]

Russia's COVID-19 vaccine showed antibody response in initial trials

By Polina Ivanova and Andrew Osborn

 

FILE PHOTO: A woman holds a small bottle labeled with a "Vaccine COVID-19" sticker and a medical syringe in this illustration taken April 10, 2020. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

 

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia's "Sputnik-V" COVID-19 vaccine produced an antibody response in all participants in early-stage trials, according to results published on Friday by The Lancet medical journal that were hailed by Moscow as an answer to its critics.

 

The results of the two trials, conducted in June-July this year and involving 76 participants, showed 100% of participants developing antibodies to the new coronavirus and no serious side effects, The Lancet said.

 

Russia licensed the two-shot jab for domestic use in August, the first country to do so and before any data had been published or a large-scale trial begun.

 

"The two 42-day trials – including 38 healthy adults each – did not find any serious adverse effects among participants, and confirmed that the vaccine candidates elicit an antibody response," The Lancet said.

 

"Large, long-term trials including a placebo comparison, and further monitoring are needed to establish the long-term safety and effectiveness of the vaccine for preventing COVID-19 infection," it said.

 

The vaccine is named Sputnik-V in homage to the world's first satellite, launched by the Soviet Union. Some Western experts have warned against its use until all internationally approved testing and regulatory steps have been taken.

 

But with the results now published for the first time in an international peer-reviewed journal, and with a 40,000-strong later-stage trial launched last week, a senior Russian official said Moscow had faced down its critics abroad.

 

"With this (publication) we answer all of the questions of the West that were diligently asked over the past three weeks, frankly with the clear goal of tarnishing the Russian vaccine," said Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), Russia's sovereign wealth fund, which has backed the vaccine.

 

"All of the boxes are checked," he told Reuters. "Now... we will start asking questions of some of the Western vaccines."

 

Commenting on the results of the early-stage trials, lead author Dr Naor Bar-Zeev of the International Vaccine Access Center, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, USA said the studies were "encouraging but small".

 

Bar-Zeev, who was not involved in the study, said "clinical efficacy for any COVID-19 vaccine has not yet been shown."

 

"The report is a case of 'so far, so good'," Brendan Wren, Professor of Microbial Pathogenesis at London's School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine said.

 

RACE TO DEVELOP VACCINE

 

Dmitriev said at least 3,000 people had already been recruited for the large-scale trial of the Sputnik-V vaccine launched last week, and initial results were expected in October or November this year.

 

Health minister Mikhail Murashko has said Russia will start mass inoculation from November or December, with a focus on high-risk groups. It will take nine to 12 months to vaccinate the majority of the population, said Alexander Gintsburg, director of the Gamaleya Institute which developed the vaccine.

 

Governments and big pharmaceutical firms are racing to develop a vaccine to end the COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed more than 850,000 people globally and infected around 26 million.

 

Over half a dozen drugmakers are already conducting advanced clinical trials, each with tens of thousands of participants. Several, including Britain’s AstraZeneca and U.S. drugmakers Moderna and Pfizer expect to know if their COVID-19 vaccines work and are safe by the end of 2020.

 

The Lancet said the early-stage trials suggested the Sputnik-V vaccine produced a response in a component of the immune system known as T cells.

 

Scientists have been scrutinising the role played by T cells in battling coronavirus infection, with recent findings showing these cells may provide longer-term protection than antibodies. [L1N2EH0X8]

 

The Sputnik-V vaccine is administered in two doses, with each based on a different vector that normally causes the common cold: human adenoviruses Ad5 and Ad26.

 

Some experts have said using this delivery mechanism could make a COVID-19 vaccine less effective, as many people have already been exposed to the Ad5 adenovirus and developed immunity to it.

 

Russia has said it expects to produce between 1.5 million and 2 million doses per month of its potential vaccine by the end of the year, gradually increasing production to 6 million doses a month.

 

(Reporting by Andrew Osborn and Polina Ivanova; Writing by Polina Ivanova, Editing by Timothy Heritage)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-09-05

 

- Whatever you're going through, the Samaritans are here for you

- Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking COVID-19 updates

[2 is 1]

I take Russian vaccine when cow start fly! Or somebody point 9 mm in back my head. And say:if you not take that you get 9 mm "ibuprofen "!

[Phuketshrew]

A small dose of Novichok will cure anything ....

[SteveK]

So they plan to start mass inoculation in December, which will take 12 months, and that's if it works during the trial. So December 2021 until they've even finished vaccinating, at best.  

[Kelsall]

The Lancet is the real deal.  This vaccine looks promising.

[Bender Rodriguez]

zombie virus, here we go

[ukrules]

10 hours ago, SteveK said:

So they plan to start mass inoculation in December, which will take 12 months, and that's if it works during the trial. So December 2021 until they've even finished vaccinating, at best.  

Yes, it's going to take years to vaccinate even the half of the world who wants to be vaccinated.

Edited September 5, 2020 by ukrules

[KKr]

12 hours ago, SteveK said:

So they plan to start mass inoculation in December, which will take 12 months, and that's if it works during the trial. So December 2021 until they've even finished vaccinating, at best.  

150 million people / 6 million Produced per month = 25 month

[thaibreakfast]

12 hours ago, Kelsall said:

The Lancet is the real deal.  This vaccine looks promising.

If by the "real deal" you mean that this vaccine looks promising after Phase 2 trials. well, lots of vaccines look promising after Phase 2 trials. Not so many do after Phase 3 trials are completed. You're setting a pretty low bar for what the "real deal" means.

[chilli42]

I think the Russians at least got the psychology of Covid right.  No vaccine developed anywhere for Covid is going to be 100% effective (the flu vaccine is 40-60% effective).  The safety of the Russian vaccine is unlikely to have any more safety issues than vaccines being developed elsewhere ... these will also not have full safety data complete by next year.  So Russia tells their citizens that they have a vaccine, so time to get back to work/normal.  The vaccine being the catalyst to restore confidence to stop hiding under a rock.  If the Russian vaccine is effective then their gamble pays off and the economy returns to grow quickly.  If the vaccine turns out not effective (or as effective as other vaccines) the story is still positive ... government did its best (more than other governments), it was better than doing nothing, economy on the mend, we now start to use whatever miracle vaccine was developed elsewhere.  The only outstanding question is safety ... but the same can be said about vaccines that people will be lining up for next year.  The Covid virus is heavily politicized.  Public policy/health has to be viewed through that lens first.

[Scott]

A post with altered quotes has been removed.  Do not change anything inside the quote box.  

From the forum netiquette:

 

2. Please do not modify someone else's post in your quoted reply, either with font or color changes or wording. Such posts will be deleted and the user warned.

 

https://forum.thaivisa.com/terms/

 

[candide]

3 hours ago, chilli42 said:

I think the Russians at least got the psychology of Covid right.  No vaccine developed anywhere for Covid is going to be 100% effective (the flu vaccine is 40-60% effective).  The safety of the Russian vaccine is unlikely to have any more safety issues than vaccines being developed elsewhere ... these will also not have full safety data complete by next year.  So Russia tells their citizens that they have a vaccine, so time to get back to work/normal.  The vaccine being the catalyst to restore confidence to stop hiding under a rock.  If the Russian vaccine is effective then their gamble pays off and the economy returns to grow quickly.  If the vaccine turns out not effective (or as effective as other vaccines) the story is still positive ... government did its best (more than other governments), it was better than doing nothing, economy on the mend, we now start to use whatever miracle vaccine was developed elsewhere.  The only outstanding question is safety ... but the same can be said about vaccines that people will be lining up for next year.  The Covid virus is heavily politicized.  Public policy/health has to be viewed through that lens first.

The problem is not only that a vaccine, which has not been tested enough, may not be effective. It is also that it may have an unexpected  adverse effect on millions of people who have been inoculated.

[ukrules]

2 minutes ago, candide said:

The problem is not only that a vaccine, which has not been tested enough, may not be effective. It is also that it may have an unexpected  adverse effect on millions of people who have been inoculated.

Regardless, we are seeing some leaps forward in vaccine technology in real time.

 

I'm sure some will work better than others, but I don't think that matters so much - there's many of them in development, lots of different types, some very different from previous models.

 

 

[candide]

1 minute ago, ukrules said:

Regardless, we are seeing some leaps forward in vaccine technology in real time.

 

I'm sure some will work better than others, but I don't think that matters so much - there's many of them in development, lots of different types, some very different from previous models.

 

 

Which is an additional risk factor, as these new types of vaccines have never been tested before.

[daveAustin]

Call me racist/cynicist, but I would not have any Russian or Chinese-made 'vaccine', thanks, and would take any claim of success with a massive pinch of salt. With these, it is all politics & power completely devoid of compassion and empathy. Touch them with a barge pole at your own risk.

[KKr]

9 hours ago, chilli42 said:

The only outstanding question is safety

being  the number of occurrences of side effects and their outcome ,
compared to the number of Covid infections, their mortality rate and the lasting damage..

[KKr]

5 hours ago, daveAustin said:

Call me racist/cynicist, but I would not have any Russian or Chinese-made 'vaccine', thanks, and would take any claim of success with a massive pinch of salt. With these, it is all politics & power completely devoid of compassion and empathy. Touch them with a barge pole at your own risk.

let me try to understand this statement. 
would you use a Chinese or Russian made electronic device?  how do you know for sure the are not spying on you ?

[candide]

Interesting news

Putin's vaccine meets opposition from frontline workers in Russia

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/09/06/europe/russia-vaccine-putin-opposition-intl/index.html