Fiocruz Expects to Manufacture Vaccine for 130 Million Brazilians in 2021

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Fiocruz (Oswaldo Cruz Foundation) has an agreement with AstraZeneca, the pharmaceutical company developing the Oxford vaccine. Some 65 million people are expected to be immunized in Brazil in the first half of 2021 and another 65 million in the second half.

Fiocruz production and innovation vice-president, Marco Krieger said on Monday, November 23rd, in an interview to GloboNews, that the foundation intends to immunize 65 million people in the first half of 2021 and other 65 million in the second, considering the higher efficacy vaccine plan disclosed by Oxford University.

Fiocruz has a technology transfer agreement with AstraZeneca, the pharmaceutical company developing the vaccine in partnership with Oxford University, to produce the immunizer on Brazilian soil.

Vaccine trials show that there is higher efficacy when the vaccine is administered in a half dose followed by a full dose, with an interval of at least one month. In practice, with a lower dose on the first application of the vaccine, more people can be immunized within a shorter interval.

“We were projecting to have 100 million doses in the first semester to provide two doses to 50 million citizens in Brazil, and we will be able to reach two doses in the first semester for 65 million Brazilians. And in the second semester, with the vaccine produced entirely in Brazil at the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, we will reach another 65 million, reaching a total of 130 million Brazilians [who will be able to be immunized],” he added.

“The main advantage is that the protocol that yielded the best result provides an additional benefit. We will be able to supply the vaccine to 30% more people than we had anticipated,” Krieger said.

AstraZeneca’s CEO Pascal Soriot also commented at a press conference that it will be possible to immunize more people than originally planned. “Being able to immunize more people faster is truly a great advantage,” he said.

The Oxford vaccine is one of four in phase 3 trials now occurring in Brazil. The other three candidates in trials in the country are from Pfizer/BioNTech, Sinovac (CoronaVac) and Johnson & Johnson.

In early November, Fiocruz announced a production and distribution schedule for the immunizer in Brazil. In August, the federal government had said it would invest R$1.9 billion in the production of 100 million doses.

Efficacy of up to 90%

The Covid-19 vaccine developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca Pharmaceutical showed efficacy of up to 90% based on the dosage, according to preliminary results released on Monday, November 23rd. The data have not yet been peer reviewed or published in a scientific journal.

The main points of the manufacturer’s statement:

• The vaccine showed 90% efficacy when administered in half dose followed by a full dose with an interval of at least one month, according to clinical trials data in the United Kingdom and Brazil. This was the lower dose scheme – which was a positive point for researchers, because it means more people can be immunized.
• When administered in two full doses, efficacy of 62% was achieved. The study that considered both types of dosage showed an average efficacy of 70.4%.
• The head of the vaccine research, Andrew Pollard, said he was optimistic that the immune response produced by the vaccine will last at least one year.
• There were 131 cases of the disease recorded among volunteers: 101 among those who were administered the placebo (inactive substance) and 30 among those who were administered the vaccine. There were no serious cases of the disease among those who were administered the vaccine.
• To reach these results, researchers analyzed the data of 11,636 immunized subjects. Of these, 8,895 were administered the two full doses, and 2,741 were given the half dose followed by a full dose.
• AstraZeneca intends to have 200 million doses ready by the end of 2020 and 700 million doses by the end of the first quarter 2021, worldwide.
• The vaccine can be stored, shipped and handled under normal refrigeration conditions (between 2°C and 8°C) for at least six months. (This is an advantage over the Pfizer candidate, which needs to be stored at -70°C during transport, and Moderna’s, which needs to be stored at -20°C).

Vaccination by March 2021

Oswaldo Cruz Foundation president Nísia Trindade said in early November she believed that vaccination against Covid-19 in Brazil would start by March. “We expect the whole immunization process to begin in the first quarter 2021,” said Nísia Trindade.

Nísia explained that she expects to begin production as early as January or February. “The Health Regulatory Agency will monitor the whole process,” she said.

Source: G1