A new study, conducted by bioRxiv, has reportedly suggests that the COVID-19 vaccine of Johnson & Johnson could be less effective than other vaccines in combating coronavirus variants.
According to the study's findings, which are not yet published inside a medical journal or peer reviewed, Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech's mRNA vaccines could provide better protection against lambda and delta variants compared to the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
The study also found that Johnson & Johnson vaccine's efficacy in neutralizing the disease has reduced substantially.
Overall, the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines were shown to be 94-95% effective in preventing mild to serious cases of COVID-19, whereas Johnson & Johnson was found to be 66.9% effective.
Nathaniel Landau, the study's lead author and a virologist at Grossman School of Medicine, NYU, stated that the researchers do not intend to scare people away from the J&J vaccine.
According to Landau, the message that researchers intended to send was not that individuals should not get the J&J shot, but that it should be enhanced in the near future either with one more shot of J&J or a booster shot of Moderna or Pfizer.
Another expert believes that Johnson & Johnson's efficacy would be improved if it was divided into two dosages, a hypothesis that was claimed to be validated through numerous tests.
John Moore, a virologist at New York-based Weill Cornell Medicine, stated that he has always thought, and frequently claimed, that the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is more apt to be a two-shot vaccine.
For the record, the study findings have come two weeks after Johnson & Johnson claimed that its vaccine was effective in combating the delta strain.
Paul Stoffels, Johnson & Johnson Chief Scientific Officer, stated that the company believes that its vaccine provides long-term protection against COVID-19 and induces neutralizing activity against the delta strain.
Stoffels elaborated that this adds to the substantial body of clinical evidence that demonstrates the J&J single-shot vaccine’s ability to protect its patients against numerous variations of concern.
Source credit: https://thehill.com/homenews/563991-new-study-finds-johnson-johnson-less-effective-against-variants?rl=1
Pranali Mehta
A chemical engineer by qualification, Pranali Mehta dutifully walked down the slated path and worked in a chemical firm for a year. Her passion for writing however, pushed her into experimenting with the same as a career. With over three years of experience in content writ Read more...