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Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine 91.3% effective after six months

By Brian Buntz | April 1, 2021

Pfizer-BioNTechThe first COVID-19 vaccine to win emergency use authorization in the U.S. is highly effective for at least six months after the second dose. Developed jointly by Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) and BioNTech (NSDQ: BNTX), the BNT162b2 vaccine  

The durability of COVID-19 vaccines had been something of an open question, although early clinical data suggested that Moderna’s mRNA-1273 COVID-19 vaccine was effective for at least 90 days after the second dose.

Pfizer plans on releasing more data related to the long-term vaccine immunogenicity in the coming weeks.

Pfizer and BioNTech plan on doing two years of follow-up for their Phase 3 vaccine trial.

Earlier this year, the two companies released data indicating that their vaccine also remains effective against a highly-transmissible SARS-CoV-2 variant first identified in South Africa.

Pfizer and BioNTech are also testing the vaccine on adolescents. Recent data suggest that the vaccine is 100% effective in adolescents aged 12 to 15 years old.

The companies are planning to file for full FDA approval of the vaccine as soon as this month. The vaccine would be the first to win that status.

Pfizer and BioNTech also recently announced that they aim to boost annual production of COVID-19 vaccine doses to 2.5 billion doses by the end of the year. Some 1.4 billion doses have already been ordered in purchase agreements.

BioNTech also announced that it is working on lyophilized and ready-to-use liquid formulations of the vaccine. Both would be easier to distribute than the current formulation, which requires ultracold storage. The ready-to-use formulation could be available in the second half of the year.


Filed Under: clinical trials, Drug Discovery, Infectious Disease
Tagged With: BioNTech, BNT162b2, clinical trials, coronavirus, covid-19, COVID-19 vaccine, COVID-19 vaccine trial, COVID-19 vaccines, immunogenicity, Pfizer
 

About The Author

Brian Buntz

As the pharma and biotech editor at WTWH Media, Brian has almost two decades of experience in B2B media, with a focus on healthcare and technology. While he has long maintained a keen interest in AI, more recently Brian has made making data analysis a central focus, and is exploring tools ranging from NLP and clustering to predictive analytics.

Throughout his 18-year tenure, Brian has covered an array of life science topics, including clinical trials, medical devices, and drug discovery and development. Prior to WTWH, he held the title of content director at Informa, where he focused on topics such as connected devices, cybersecurity, AI and Industry 4.0. A dedicated decade at UBM saw Brian providing in-depth coverage of the medical device sector. Engage with Brian on LinkedIn or drop him an email at bbuntz@wtwhmedia.com.

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