An Israeli health worker from Maccabi Healthcare Services is preparing to administer a dose of the Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine on February 24, 2021 in Tel Aviv.
Jack Guez | AFP | Getty Images
The coronavirus variant first discovered in South Africa is able to evade part of the protection of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, according to a new Israeli study, which has not yet been peer-reviewed.
Researchers at Tel Aviv University and Clalit, Israel’s largest healthcare organization, examined about 400 people who had tested positive for Covid-19 after receiving at least one dose of the vaccine. They compared them to the same number of infected and unvaccinated people.
The researchers found that the prevalence of the South African variant, known as B.1.351, among patients who received two doses of the vaccine was approximately eight times higher than those who were not vaccinated. The data, released online over the weekend, suggests that B.1.351 is more capable of “breaking” the vaccine’s protection than the original strain, the researchers wrote in the study.
“Based on the patterns of the general population, we would have expected only one case of the South African variant, but we have seen eight,” Professor Adi Stern, who led the research, told The Times of Israel. “We can say it’s less effective, but more research is needed to establish exactly how much.”
CNBC has contacted Pfizer to comment on the study.
The new data comes as public health officials worry that highly contagious variants, which studies have shown can reduce the effectiveness of vaccines, could slow global progress on the pandemic.
Last month, CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky issued a stern warning and informed reporters that she was concerned about the United States facing “imminent fatality,” as variants and cases spread. Covid-19 newspapers are bouncing back, threatening to send more people to the country. hospital.
“I’m going to pause here, lose the script, and reflect on the recurring feeling I have of impending doom,” he said on March 29th. “We have a lot to look forward to, so much promise and potential from where we are and so much reason for hope, but right now I’m scared.”
Israel launched its national vaccination campaign in December, prioritizing people aged 60 and over, health workers and people with comorbid conditions. In February, it was a world leader in vaccinations, inoculating millions of citizens against the virus.
In January, Pfizer and the Israeli Ministry of Health signed a collaboration agreement to monitor the real-world impact of their vaccine.
The researchers noted that the main warning of the study was the size of the sample. B.1.351 accounted for only about 1% of all Covid-19 cases, they said. B.1.1.7, the variant first identified in the UK, is more common.
As the variants spread, drug makers said they were testing whether a third dose would offer more protection.
In February, Pfizer and BioNTech said they were testing a third dose of their Covid-19 vaccine to better understand the immune response against new variants of the virus.