WHICH ONE WOULD YOU CHOOSE?

 

It all started around march 2020 here in India, when we all were suddenly disrupted from our daily lives. At that time, we all were praying for some miracle to happen in the pharmaceutical industry, to get a vaccine out of sky, as soon as possible. The irony is now, after a year when the various vaccine candidates have finally arrived, they all started to compete with each other, then to compete with the pandemic itself.

So basically, this blog is to tell the differences between the various vaccines available or might be available. Because apparently, there is a lot of fuss going around for what to consider for our lives and what not to.

In the case of a classical vaccine, like the present ones such as for polio, influenza, rabies. A weaker version of the same virus is being used inside the vaccine, which goes inside the body, and produces an immune response in the form of antibodies. An example for this type of COVID-19 vaccine is of the covaxin(India).

In the case of vaccines used for covid19, most of them have some sort of genetic modification. The two major vaccines in the world, Pfizer and moderna have used the m-RNA based vaccine. This type of vaccine doesn’t use the normal virus, instead they just use the genetic code of the same virus or to be specific a part of the virus. The m-RNA vaccines are the vaccines of the new world which can be produced with in large numbers since it doesn’t require the original virus. Thus, the production rate is quite high. Covid-19 is the first m-RNA vaccine which has been approved. So how does this covid19 vaccine works?

·       At first the m-RNA of the spike protein (part of virus) is genetically modified so that it doesn’t cause any harm to the human body. (In simple terms, m-RNA is the information to make a protein).

·       Secondly, this m-RNA is packed into lipid nano particles to get inside the body.

·        After being injected into the upper arm, this information is being used by the muscle cells to produce spike proteins. So now our body gets to know that something different is there and starts producing antibodies against the same covid19 virus and starts an immune response so that the next when the same virus comes, our body will be able to identify it.

 

Talking about the other one, from the researchers of oxford and being produced here in India, the AstraZeneca. Adenoviruses are the most preferable and easily used for gene delivery, so they have used an adenovirus which causes common cold in chimpanzees (harmless to humans), genetically modified it with coronavirus spike proteins and used as a vaccine. This genetically modified adenovirus delivers the gene to human cells and then the whole process is same as the RNA one.

 This vaccine candidate is quite a good choice for the developing nations, the reason being its storage temperature viz. about 2-8 degree Celsius. On contrary, the Pfizer and moderna has the storage temperatures of about -20 to -80 degree Celsius. So, considering such values, getting a proper logistics and supply chain is not a choice for some nations around the globe.

 

Which vaccine is more efficient?

In pharmaceutical world a vaccine efficacy is defined as the percentage reduction of disease in a vaccinated group of people compared to an unvaccinated group(placebo). The various groups have already published their efficacy data on the questioned vaccine, but some have not.

As an undergraduate student I am in nowhere to question the efficacy data and the hard work of researchers. But the matter of fact which concerns me that some of the approved vaccines haven’t really completed their trails or not even given a proper efficacy data, which itself is a big concern. I am just providing a comparison to judge on your own.

 

	Pfizer/BioNTech	Moderna	Oxford/Astrazeneca/Covishield	Covaxin
TYPE	m-RNA	m-RNA	Genetically modified adenovirus.	Weakened virus.
STORAGE (in Celsius)	-60 to -80	-20	2 to 8	2 to 8
EFFICACY DATA	95%	95%	62% in first dose followed by second dose. 90% in first half dose followed by second dose.	Not available.
STATUS IN INDIA	N/A	N/A	Approved.	Approved.(In clinical trial mode)
PRICING (per dose)	$20	$15-$17	$5-$6	N/A

 

 Not just the efficacy data, one more thing which has the most important aspect is the “side-effects”. You must have already heard about the normal side effects like fever, joint pain, weakness, etc. I am talking about the serious ones.

The two from the western world, even after completing their phase 3 trails, doesn’t really proved out to be safe for everyone. The Pfizer shot is not recommended for the people having history of allergic reactions. Recently, a Portuguese health worker died after two days of vaccination, without having any adverse effects. In Mexico, a death occurred with difficulty in breathing, seizures and skin rashes.

The thing is when the tested vaccines are already raising questions, then are we in any position to approve the ones in “clinical trial mode”.