Dear MEL Topic Readers,
Covid vaccine: First 'milestone' vaccine offers 90% protection
The long and most awaited medical treatment is about to be approved for use, the coronavirus vaccine. Pfizer, a multinational pharmaceutical corporation, and BioNTech, a German biotechnology company dedicated to active immunotherapies, announced that their coronavirus vaccine has shown 90% effectiveness without safety concerns. Once approved, the vaccine will be mass-produced, distributed, and applied to those who need to be vaccinated the most in the countries that had placed orders already.
How does the vaccine work? The vaccine enters the cells and tells to produce the coronavirus spike protection, which prompts the immune system to produce antibodies and activate T-cells to fight the virus. However, it is still unclear whether this newly developed vaccine prevents the virus from spreading from patients or stops developing symptoms. Also, it is still unknown how long the immunity lasts. There are a few logistic issues, too. The vaccine needs to be kept in ultra-cold storage at below minus 80C. That’s a much colder temperature than to preserve any frozen food! Also, a second dose needs to be vaccinated three weeks after the first vaccination.
Now, governments and health authorities need to plan and implement the most effective way to make use of this and other upcoming coronavirus vaccines to curb the pandemic.
It sounds as if an armistice draft is nearly agreed upon after an eight-month battle.
Read the article and learn about this great news in the midst of the coronavirus crisis.
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