Johnson & Johnson today announced that its single-dose Covid-19 vaccine is effective against the Delta variant, detected in India and particularly contagious, with an immune response that can last for at least eight months.
According to a study carried out by the American group to a small group of eight people who received the vaccine produced by Janssen, the group's pharmaceutical, the antibodies and immune system cells neutralized the Delta variant.
A second study involving 20 vaccinated patients at Beth Israel Medical Center in Boston, USA, produced the same results.
Data from the studies were uploaded to the BioRxiv scientific paper “pre-publication” platform, where scientists can submit their work prior to possible publication in a scientific journal.
"We believe our vaccine offers long-lasting protection against Covid-19 and allows for neutralization of the Delta variant," said Paul Stoffels, Chief Scientific Officer of Johnson & Johnson, quoted in a statement.
The data studied over eight months shows that the single-dose vaccine developed by the lab “produces a strong neutralizing antibody response,” said Mathai Mammen, head of Research and Development at Johnson & Johnson.
The World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Thursday of the risk of a new wave of the pandemic carried by the Delta variant in Europe.
This variant, initially detected in India, is 40% to 60% more transmissible than Alpha, according to WHO.
WHO reiterated that the vaccines are effective against the Delta variant, but it is necessary to receive both doses, not just one.
The Delta variant of the coronavirus, which is particularly contagious, should account for 90% of new covid-19 cases in the European Union by the end of August, estimated the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) last week.
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