COVID-19 Vaccination ALERT! Pfizer, Moderna or Covaxin which one is EFFECTIVE against the Indian variant - check full details here

COVID-19 Vaccination Latest News Today: As the country continue to battle against the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the COVID-19 variant found in India has been an additional cause of concern for the people. The COVID-19 variants of B.1.617 and B.1.618 have been first identified in India. It has to be noted that the COVID-19 vaccination drive is already going on in the country. Initially, the vaccination drive in India began with Covaxin and Covishield, recently, Sputnik V has also been added to the list. 

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Recently CNN reported that researchers have reported in a new pre-print paper which has not yet been peer-reviewed that Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines appear to protect against COVID variants B.1.617 and B.1.618 first identified in India. According to the pre-print paper posted to the online server biorxiv.org ​on Sunday, based on lab experiments involving cell cultures, the B.1.617 and B.1.618 variants seem to be partially resistant to the antibodies elicited by vaccination. 

The researchers from New York University wrote in their paper, "There is a good reason to believe that vaccinated individuals will remain protected against the B.1.617 and B.1.618 variants" as per an ANI report. However, more research is required to determine the effectiveness of the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines against these variants in the real world. The World Health Organization (WHO) has classified the coronavirus variant first found in India as a "variant of global concern". Furthermore, CNN reported that studies show the B.1.617 mutation spreads more easily than other variants and requires further study.

In this context, a recent development by Bharat Biotech's Covaxin must also be addressed. Recently, Bharat Biotech cited a study published in a peer-reviewed medical journal supporting its claim that the Covaxin is effective against the B.1.617 and B.1.1.7 variants, first found in India and UK, respectively. Suchitra Ella, Bharat Biotech co-founder and Joint Managing Director tweeted, "Covaxin gets international recognition yet again, by scientific research data published demonstrating protection against the new variants. Yet another feather in its cap." 

It has been informed that the vaccination with Covaxin produced neutralising titres against all key emerging variants tested, including B.1.617 and B.1.1.7 variants which were first identified in India and UK, respectively. This study was conducted in collaboration with the National Institute of Virology and Indian Council of Medical Research. The study found a modest reduction in neutralisation by a factor of 1.95 against B.1.617 variant compared to vaccine variant D614G. The study further added, "There was a modest reduction in neutralization by a factor of 1.95 was observed against B.1.617 variant compared to vaccine variant (D614G). Despite this reduction, neutralising titre levels with B.1.617 remain above levels expected to be protective."