New UK government research suggests two doses of a Covid-19 vaccine are needed to provide strong protection against symptomatic infection from the coronavirus variant first identified in India, according to two people briefed on the preliminary data.
Two vaccine doses provided 81 percent protection against the B.1.617.2 variant found in India, and 87 percent against the B.1.1.7 strain first identified in Kent in south-east England, according to the Public Health England data that was presented to a meeting of the government’s New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag).
Two people who attended the Nervtag meeting on Friday said the data showed that one dose offered 33 percent protection against symptomatic infection from B.1.617.2, and 51 per cent against B.1.1.7.
This suggests a single shot offers 35 percent less protection against B.1.617.2 compared with B.1.1.7, according to Financial Times analysis.
The PHE figures aggregate data from the BioNTech/Pfizer and Oxford/AstraZeneca j abs.
The rapid spread of B.1.617.2 in pockets of England has cast doubt on the country’s road map out of lockdown, with the next phase due to take place on June 21.
The PHE said: “Public Health England scientists are evaluating the effectiveness of vaccines against the B.1.617.2 variant of Sars-Cov-2. We will be publishing the results of this evaluation in due course.”
The new PHE research is likely to underscore the importance of taking two doses of Covid-19 vaccines to protect against B.1.617.2.
The government last week reduced the gap between doses for those aged over 50 from 12 weeks to eight, in an attempt to ensure the most vulnerable in the UK receive full vaccine protection as quickly as possible. It has also introduced increased vaccinations in B.1.617.2 hotspots such as Bolton and Blackburn with Darwen.