Pfizer jab produces less antibodies against Delta variant: Lancet study

People fully vaccinated by the PfizerBioNTech vaccine are likely to have more than five times lower levels of neutralising antibodies against the Delta variant first identified in India compared to the original strain according to research published in The Lancet journalThe study also shows that levels of these antibodies that are able to recognise and fight the virus are lower with increasing age and that levels decline over time providing additional evidence in support of plans to deliver a booster dose to vulnerable peopleIt supports current plans in the UK to reduce the dose gap between vaccines since they found that after just one dose of the PfizerBioNTech vaccine people are less likely to develop antibody levels against the B16172 variant as high as those seen against the previously dominant B117 Alpha variant first found in KentThe team led by researchers from the Francis Crick Institute UK noted that levels of antibodies alone do not predict vaccine effectiveness and prospective population studies are also needed Lower neutralising antibody levels may still be associated with protection against Covid19 they saidAlso Read UK approves Pfizer BioNTech Covid19 shot for 12 to 15yearoldsThe study analysed antibodies in the blood of 250 healthy people who received either one or two doses of the PfizerBioNTech Covid19 vaccine up to three months after their first doseThe researchers tested the ability of antibodies to block entry of the virus into cells so called lsquoneutralising antibodiesrsquo against five different variants of SARSCoV2 They found in people who had two doses of the PfizerBioNTech vaccine levels of neutralising antibodies were more than five times lower against the B16172 variant when compared to the original strain upon which current vaccines are based This antibody response was even lower in people who only received one dose they said lsquoRelease medical records of Wuhan lab workersrsquoTop US infectious disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci has asked China to release the medical records of nine people whose ailments might provide vital clues into whether Covid19 is the result of a lab leak the Financial Times reported on ThursdayldquoI would like to see the medical records of the three people who are reported to have got sick in 2019 Did they really get sick and if so what did they get sick withrdquo the report quoted Fauci as saying The origin of the virus is hotly contested with US intelligence agencies still examining reports that researchers at a Chinese virology laboratory in Wuhan were seriously ill in 2019 a month before the first Covid19 cases were reportedChinese scientists and officials have consistently rejected the lab leak hypothesis saying the virus could have been circulating in other regions before it hit Wuhan and might have even entered China through imported frozen food shipments or wildlife tradingTaiwan gets vaccines from JapanA flight carrying 124 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine from Japan arrived in Taiwan on Friday to help it fight its largest outbreak Neither country mentioned the feud between Taiwan and China over the islandrsquos efforts to get the Pfizer and BioNTech jabDelta variant now dominant in UKThe Delta variant of Covid19 or the B16172 highly transmissible variant of concern VOC first identified in India has become the dominant VOC in the UK and may come with an increased risk of hospitalisation health officials in Britain have saidPfizerBioNTech vaccine for teens in UKThe UKrsquos medicines regulator on Friday approved the PfizerBioNTech coronavirus vaccine for 12 to 15 year olds saying it is ldquosafe and effectiverdquo in this age group and the benefits outweigh any risksThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever