Moderna’s Covid vaccine 94.5% effective, edges over Pfizer on storage

Moderna’s investigational vaccine candidate has proven to be 94.5 per cent effective in preventing Covid-19 infection based on the interim data from a large-scale late stage trial, the company said on Monday.

This makes Moderna the second US-based company to report late-stage efficacy data from vaccine trials together with Pfizer. Last week, Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine candidates were found to be over 90 per cent effective in interim analysis. Moderna’s interim analysis was based on 95 infections among trial participants who received either a placebo or the vaccine. Of those, only five infections occurred in those who received the vaccine, which is administered in two shots 28 days apart.

Based on these interim safety and efficacy data, Moderna intends to submit for an Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA) with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the coming weeks and anticipates having the EUA informed by the final safety and efficacy data (with a median duration of at least 2 months). Moderna also plans to submit applications for authorisations to global regulatory agencies.

Both Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines are based on messenger RNA technology, a new technology that has not been used so far to develop an approved vaccine.

According to international agencies, the US could have two vaccines authorised for emergency use in December with as many as 60 million doses of the vaccine available this year. In 2021, the US could have access to more than one billion doses from these two vaccine makers. US has 330 million residents. Therefore, there would be more supply than what could be absorbed by the country alone.

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Pfizer has already indicated it is engaging with the Indian government to advance dialogue and explore opportunities to make this vaccine available for use.

A Pfizer spokesperson had recently indicated to Business Standard that it had created two dedicated supply lines with established vaccine capabilities — one each in US and Europe — to exclusively manufacture this vaccine for use across the world. It has said its priority was to ensure rapid manufacturing and deployment of the vaccine.

Moderna is likely to have an edge over Pfizer when it comes to distribution in developing countries due to temperature

requirements. Moderna’s vaccine can be stored at normal fridge temperatures of 2 to 8 degrees Celsius for 30 days and it can be stored up to six months at -20 degree Celsius. In contrast, Pfizer’s vaccine must be shipped and stored at -70 degree Celsius. It can be stored for up to five days in a standard refrigerator or up to 15 days in a thermal shipping box.

Moderna does not yet have an Indian partner to make or distribute its vaccine for Covid-19. India is likely to begin its mass inoculation drive from January-February next year and is banking primarily on the AstraZeneca and Bharat Biotech candidates for the same.

ALSO READ: Moderna trial success gives world more hope in race to end pandemic

The data from Moderna’s trial involving 30,000 volunteers also showed the vaccine prevented cases of severe Covid-19, a question that still remains with the Pfizer vaccine. Of the 95 cases in Moderna’s trial, 11 were severe and all 11 occurred among volunteers who got the placebo.

The 95 cases of Covid-19 included several key groups who are at increased risk for severe disease, including 15 cases in adults aged 65 and older and 20 in participants from racially diverse groups.

“We will need much more data and a full report or publication to see if the benefit is consistent across all groups, notably the elderly, but this is definitely encouraging progress,” said Stephen Evans, professor of pharmacoepidemiology, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

Most side effects were mild to moderate. A significant proportion of volunteers, however, experienced more severe aches and pains after taking the second dose, including about 10 per cent who had fatigue severe enough to interfere with daily activities while another 9 per cent had severe body aches. Most of these complaints were generally short-lived, Moderna said.

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