We will soon have an extra weapon to fight Covid: it is the vaccino Novavax, developed by the US pharmaceutical company of the same name and authorized for the first time in Indonesia. Studies on it show promising results, on the other hand the technology used in its production has already been widely tested. Let’s see in detail how this new vaccine works and when it could arrive in Italy.
Novavax vaccine, what is it
Novavax has been manufactured since Serum Institute of India which, in addition to being the leading vaccine company in the world, also has AstraZeneca in its catalog. This new vaccine should have entered the market a few months ago, but there have been some delays that have forced the postponement. Now he got his first go-ahead, with approved for use in Indonesia.
The company has already requested authorization from other countries, including India, the Philippines, the Great Britain and Canada. The next step will be to submit all documentation on this vaccine to the WHO, EMA and FDA, to obtain permission for distribution to most of the world. If this procedure is successful, it is likely that the European Union will start using Novavax as early as next year, alongside the other four vaccines currently licensed – Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson.
Novavax, how it works
Novavax is based on the technology of recombinant proteins, already extensively studied and used in other vaccines such as those against hepatitis B, meningococcus B, herpes zoster and HPv. Vaccines also administered to newborns, precisely because of their high safety profile. To develop Novavax, the scientists analyzed a specific RNA sequence of the virus. From this, they made in the laboratory some artificial spike proteins from the particular characteristic. These molecules, once injected into the body, are able to assemble to form viral-like particles, which are almost identical to those of Covid.
These molecules stimulate the body’s immune response, which activates T and B lymphocytes, immediately giving rise to the production of antibodies against the Coronavirus. NVX-CoV2373 (this is the technical name of Novavax) is therefore composed of recombinant spike proteins mixed with an adjuvant based on saponin. It is very interesting to note that the vaccine does not contain the virus but only its protein, which cannot replicate or cause disease. In short, it is very safe and it has very few side effects of slight relief.
The effectiveness of the new vaccine
Several investigations have already highlighted high efficacy, regarding Novavax. Research conducted in the United States and Mexico on over 30,000 volunteers found 100% protection against moderate and severe disease, and overall protection of 90.4%. The final study, published in the new England Journal of Medicine, confirms these excellent results. The vaccine has an efficacy of 96.4% against the original virus strain, 86.3% against the Alfa variant and 89.7% in general. It now remains to be seen what its effects will be against the Delta variant.
The results of Novavax are substantially comparable to those obtained by mRna vaccines (the Pfizer and the Moderna). However, this has fewer side effects – volunteers who experienced them mostly reported headaches, fatigue, and other mild symptoms.