Scientists at Oxford University say their experimental coronavirus vaccine has been shown in an early trial to prompt a protective immune response in hundreds of people who got the shot, the AP reports.
British researchers first began testing the vaccine in April in about 1,000 people, half of whom got the experimental vaccine. Such early trials are designed to evaluate safety and see what kind of immune response was provoked, but can’t tell if the vaccine truly protects.
In research published Monday in the journal Lancet, scientists said that they found their experimental COVID-19 vaccine produced a dual immune response in people aged 18 to 55 that lasted at least two months after they were immunized.
“We are seeing good immune response in almost everybody,” said Dr. Adrian Hill, director of the Jenner Institute at Oxford University. “What this vaccine does particularly well is trigger both arms of the immune system,” he said.
Hill said that neutralizing antibodies are produced — molecules which are key to blocking infection. In addition, the vaccine also causes a reaction in the body’s T-cells, which help by destroying cells that have been taken over by the virus.
The experimental COVID-19 vaccine caused minor side effects like fever, chills and muscle pain more often than in those who got a control meningitis vaccine.
Hill said that larger trials evaluating the vaccine’s effectiveness, involving about 10,000 people in the U.K. as well as participants in South Africa and Brazil are still underway. Another trial is slated to start in the U.S. soon, aiming to enroll about 30,000 people, the AP reports.
He said the vaccine seemed to produce a comparable level of antibodies to those produced by people who recovered from a COVID-19 infection and hoped that the T-cell response would provide even more protection.
Hill said Oxford has partnered with drugmaker AstraZeneca to produce their vaccine globally, and that the company has already committed to making 2 billion doses.
Gold Standard of Research
What’s gold standard if this wasn’t tested with real placebo?
Oh my bad, but at least we’ll have one soon!
We are to trust something that was made out of fear, rushed and is new? No thank you . Why couldn’t they test this with real placebo? Super strange
A placebo is any substance that is not the drug / vaccine in question.
There are 200 companies that are trying to make a Covid19 vaccine.
Will any of them be acceptable to you?
Or are you an anti science anti vaxxer?
Why to have a shot if it’s only for two months? Sounds like flu shot not is effective
The immunity may last years. But we don’t have years to wait to see.
So far the immunity is lasting for at least 2 months. The amount of time since immunity was first observed.
But will most likely last for much longer.