A major trial in the UK looking at whether COVID-19 vaccines can be safely mixed has been extended to shots made by Moderna and Novavax, researchers announced on Wednesday.
The Com-Cov study, led by the University of Oxford, was launched in February to compare the effect of administering a first dose of AstraZeneca – Oxford AZN.
AZN,
vaccine, a few weeks later followed by the vaccine made jointly by the drug company Pfizer PFE,
and biotechnology BioNTech BNTX,
and vice versa.
In the extended study, adults older than 50 will have received their first vaccination in the past eight to twelve weeks.
These volunteers, who received the drug company AstraZeneca’s vaccine, developed with the University of Oxford, or the vaccine Pfizer – BioNTech, will receive the same survey at random, or one of the biotech Moderna MRNA,
0A45,
or the one of the pharmaceutical Novavax NVAX,
0A3S,
for a second dose.
Read: Modern BioNTech shares rise after regulators discontinue use of J&J vaccine
The six new ‘arms’ of the trial will involve 175 people each, bringing the total number of participants in the trial to 1,250.
At eight sites in the UK, researchers will monitor the responses to the immune system, as well as any adverse reactions, such as fever, to these new combinations of vaccinations. The trial was designed as a so-called ‘non-inferiority’ study, which means that the intention is to show that mixing is not significantly worse than not mixing.
“If we can show that these mixed schedules elicit an immune response that is as good as the standard schedules, and without a significant increase in vaccine responses, it will be possible for more people to complete their COVID-19 immunization course faster,” says Matthew Snape, associate professor of pediatrics and vaccination at the University of Oxford and lead investigator on the trial, in a statement.
“It will also create resilience in the system if there are no vaccines available,” Snape added.
Read: Modern COVID-19 vaccine vaccination begins in England, providing an alternative of less than thirty for AstraZeneca
The extensive study comes after the launch of the Moderna vaccine in England started this week in the UK
The Novavax vaccine is 96% effective in preventing cases caused by the original version of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, in a late-stage trial conducted in the United Kingdom. ,
in the United Kingdom, has not yet been approved and is continuously reviewed by the country’s drug regulator, the Regulatory Agency (Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency, MHRA).
Read: The biotechnology company says Novavax chief financial officer
Results of the original Com-Cov trial, which used only the AstraZeneca and Pfizer – BioNTech vaccine, are expected in May, while the results of the second phase would appear by June or July, although the study would take a year. .
If it shows promising results, the MHRA and the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization will formally assess the safety and efficacy of any new vaccination regimen before introducing it to patients.