In search of effective immunity

Can effective immunization be obtained in just under a year? The WHO itself, in the voice of its holder Tedros Adhanom, follows the conservative line advising that a "totally reliable" vaccine will take between 12 to 18 months and then it will be necessary to market it and start applying it in the population; hence the advice on hygiene measures, the use of the mouthpiece in public places and keeping the social distance of two meters between person and person.

Trump, on the other hand, states that there will be one this year, the British Prime Minister Johnson himself also confirms it and other dignitaries such as the French President, Emmanuel Macron, assure that it is coming.

Other experts in immunization and virology endorse the WHO, stressing that the arrival of a fully effective vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 will take time to crystallize; this is what the Spanish Association of Vaccinology says, warning of the risks of a 'fast track' vaccine against the coronavirus.

Too much of a hurry? Could it be forged? There are references to the measles virus, recalls Ananya Mandal, since the 7th century and it was not until 1954 that the virus was isolated by John Enders and Thomas Peebles, in Boston, Massachusetts.

Until 1963 the measles vaccine was found, first "licensed in the United States", the finding became a relief since every two or three years there were measles epidemics affecting millions of people.

What lessons have you learned from this case? The Calcutta National Medical College and Hospital researcher recalled that between 1985 and 1988, the scientific community determined that "many cases of measles" had occurred in previously vaccinated children.

Only one dose was insufficient to maintain immunity, so the two doses needed to effectively protect the population against measles were concluded.

And in other cases, no vaccines are found for diseases such as H.I.V., a virus that has been the headache of hundreds of clinical and biological laboratories for more than 40 years, or they are questionable like the effectiveness of the dengue vaccine.

The European Commission will support part of the European research for a coronavirus vaccine, of course, the EU is asking for priority treatment in exchange for access to the Emergency Support Facility of EUR 2.7 billion. Will there be one so quickly? It seems that the British will have it first, on pain of pointing out that the UK is no longer a member of the EU... tremendous problem.

The most positive ones are those of the Jenner Institute, Oxford University. Its director, Adam Hill, is fully confident in the progress of the team led by Andrew Pollard.

Little was known about the new coronavirus, but they began to investigate and at the end of the first quarter received a contribution of 20 million euros from the government of their country.

In mid-June, they are the only laboratory in phase 2b/3, meaning that it successfully passed the tests on macaques; then, in a first stage with healthy individuals, between 18 and 50 years old, it included a group of 546 people that ended up expanding to a thousand; all volunteers with a remuneration - as compensation - for serving as guinea pigs of between 400 and 600 euros per person.

The next phase included a clinical trial with children, ages 5-12, and people over 65 up to age 85; in May, the Jenner Institute announced the expansion of its scope with up to 10,000 candidates.

Already in phase 2b/3, an agreement arose with AstraZeneca (the fifth largest pharmaceutical company in the world) to produce two billion doses of the vaccine globally and to distribute it; and they began trials outside British borders with 30,000 volunteers in the American Union and 2,000 volunteers in Brazil.

"Oxford University and AstraZeneca are collaborating with a wide range of countries and multilateral agencies, including local organizations to look at their needs. Brazil is a priority for the study because of the high number of infections and its upward curve of COVID-19," Oxford reported.

The other laboratory to triangulate the production of its vaccine is the prestigious Serum Institute of India, one of the largest manufacturers by volume of vaccines; the agreement is to produce 1 billion doses to be destined for less developed countries.

The world population is 7,684,000. A contingent of 3 billion doses of coronavirus vaccine would initially protect a handful of countries if democratic and committed distribution is not achieved; the goal in the United Kingdom is to produce it from next September and begin vaccination in 2021.

But the consensus of the World Health Organization (WHO) would have to be obtained first, although there are suspicions as to whether everything will end up in the hands of a UK-US alliance in which allied countries are privileged; and Russia has said that it will start testing its own on humans next July. 

So far, China has its scientific community working against the clock, hoping that if they are not the first to get it, at least they will be the second, to present one with greater immunization capacity. The battle against the coronavirus also shows the hegemonic struggle in the 21st century.