Study delivers devastating results for dead corona vaccine

How well did inactivated vaccines protect against the Corona variant Omikron? One study does not provide good news for either of these vaccines.

Frankfurt – The corona-Variant * Omikron is spreading rapidly all over the world. It has a particularly large number of mutations, especially on the spike protein. According to the Robert Koch Institute, some of these amino acid changes are known to have an impact on transmissibility and immune escape. With the advent of the Omikron variant, the concerns of many increased that the previously used ones too Corona vaccines* Possibly less effective protection against corona infections and severe Covid-19 courses.

So far it is known: Due to the Omicron variant, some vaccines, such as those from Biontech / Pfizer and Astrazeneca,* no longer act so strongly, which is why a booster vaccination is urgently recommended. According to an international study, the Moderna vaccine especially against the Corona variant Omikron. * But meanwhile other players have entered the vaccine market.

Next Protein vaccines like Novavax, * which work on the basis of viral protein particles produced in the laboratory, there are also so-called dead vaccines. One of them is Coronavac from the Chinese manufacturer Sinovac. But especially on this dead vaccine, a study is now delivering downright devastating results.

Dead vaccine Coronavac hardly works against Omikron: How does the Corona vaccine work?

Inactivated vaccines work on the basis of inactivated, i.e. killed, coronavirus pathogens. This is how the classic, well-known vaccines against tetanus or whooping cough work. As early as spring 2021, the WHO issued emergency approval for Coronavac, among other things. However, previous research already showed that this Corona inactivated vaccines have some disadvantages* conceal within themselves.

In October 2021, a study in the journal Nature showed that the protection against infection is lower with the dead vaccines than with the mRNA vaccinations from Biontech / Pfizer and Moderna* or the vector vaccine Astrazeneca* Other studies have concluded that the level of neutralizing antibodies is lower in dead vaccines.

The Omikron variant did not yet exist at that time, of course. This has changed now. Researchers from Hong Kong compared the effectiveness of the vaccine from Biontech / Pfizer * with the effect of Coronavac from Sinovac. For this purpose, it was investigated how high the protection against the Corona variant Omikron is when vaccinated people who received either Biontech or Coronavac as a first and second vaccination were then vaccinated again with one of the two alternatives as a booster. The The result is the University of Hong Kong released.

Corona inactivated vaccine against the Omicron variant: Study delivers sobering results

It showed that people who had been vaccinated twice with the dead vaccine, who also received Coronavac as a booster, did not develop a sufficient number of antibodies against Omikron. It was different with those who received the vaccine from Biontech / Pfizer as a booster. Regardless of whether they had received the dead vaccine as a first or second vaccination, their antibodies were at a sufficient level together with the mRNA booster.

In addition, the researchers found that neither a double vaccination with the dead vaccine Coronavac nor with Biontech / Pfizer produced sufficient antibodies against Omikron. “All those who already have two cans of Comirnaty [von Biontech/Pfizer Anm. d. Red] or Coronavac should have a third dose of Comirnaty vaccine six months after their second vaccination. In this way you can develop optimal protection against the Omikron variant, ”emphasized Malik Peiris, one of the heads of the study. (slo) * fr.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA.