Pfizer Vaccine Effective Against British Covid Strain But Not South African

THE Pfizer/BioNTech Vaccine is Said to be Effective Against the British Covid Strain But Not the South African, According to Preliminary Studies

Preliminary studies published on Wednesday (January 20) revealed some interesting data about the new variants of COVID that have recently been detected.

The studies carried out by an international team of researchers from British and Dutch universities about the British and South African variants of Covid-19 show that while the former would not alter the effectiveness of the BioNTech / Pfizer vaccine, the latter probably carries a higher risk of reinfection.

The recent emergence of both variants, the result of natural mutations suffered by viruses, raises great concern since they are more contagious than the SARS-CoV-2 that emerged in Wuhan.

As reported yesterday by the World Health Organisation (WHO), the coronavirus mutation B117, which was first discovered in Great Britain, has now spread to at least 60 countries after it was discovered in ten other countries within the last week.

The B117 mutation, first detected in mid-December, is said to be 50 to 70 per cent more contagious than the virus in its previous form, while another virus variant discovered in South Africa has now been found in 23 countries, according to the WHO.

The results of the preliminary study “suggest that the majority of vaccine responses should be effective against variant B.1.1.7”, known as the British variant.

The South African variant poses a “significant risk” of reinfection, according to a preliminary study that also expresses doubts about the efficacy of vaccines for this strain.

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