US Backs Waiving Patents on COVID Vaccines

In a historic move, the US government has today announced its support for waiving patent protections for COVID-19 vaccines, a measure aimed at boosting supplies so that people around the world can get the shots, says an article published in Nature.

“The extraordinary circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic call for extraordinary measures,” said US Trade Representative Katherine Tai in a statement.

Vaccines to make it Legal through Patents

The move comes on 5 May, the first of a two-day meeting of...

https://mfame.guru/us-backs-waiving-patents-on-covid-vaccines/

New Data Shows Severe COVID-19 In Older Adults Reduce By Vaccinations

New data show both Pfizer-BioNTech and Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines significantly reduce severe COVID-19 in older adults, says an article published in Gov.uk.

PHE’s Real-world Study

On March 1, 2021, Public Health England (PHE) has submitted a pre-print of a real-world study that shows that both the Pfizer and Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines are highly effective in reducing COVID-19 infections among older people aged 70 years and over. Since January, protection against symptomatic COVID, 4 weeks after...

https://mfame.guru/new-data-shows-severe-covid-19-in-older-adults-reduce-by-vaccinations/

Covaxin Is Safe With No Serious Side Effects, Says Leading Medical Journal

Covaxin, India’s first indigenous vaccine for Covid-19, is “safe, immunogenic with no serious side effects”, says leading medical journal The Lancet in its interim efficacy analysis, says an article published in Economic Times.

Vaccine’s Phase 2 results

The Lancet – Infectious Diseases Journal, published phase 2 results of the vaccine developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech.

However, the report made it clear that efficacy cannot be determined by phase 2 trials and this required further...

https://mfame.guru/covaxin-is-safe-with-no-serious-side-effects-says-leading-medical-journal/

Age Rules for Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine in EU Countries

The European Medicines Agency approved last month the COVID-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University for people over 18 years old, says an article published in Reuters.

Vaccines for Elder People

Some EU countries, though, have restricted its use to people under 65 because of a lack of data for older people in clinical trials for the shot.

British regulators have received extra trial data from AstraZeneca that supports their view that the vaccine is effective in the elderly, a...

https://mfame.guru/age-rules-for-oxford-astrazeneca-covid-19-vaccine-in-eu-countries/

Pharma Distributors Talks with U.S. for Cut of COVID-19 Vaccine Shipping Deal

U.S. pharmaceutical distributors are talking to federal officials about increasing the number of companies shipping coronavirus vaccines as part of the Biden administration’s push to speed up inoculations, according to an industry executive and three people familiar with the matter, says an article published in Reuters.

Initial Phase of the Campaign

President Joe Biden has called the initial phase of the vaccination campaign a “dismal failure” and with vaccinations in the United States at around...

https://mfame.guru/pharma-distributors-talks-with-u-s-for-cut-of-covid-19-vaccine-shipping-deal/

Container Freight Demand To Remain Buoyant Amid Surging Rates

  • Container freight demand to escalate throughout the Lunar New Year.
  • A delay in the return of containers to dockside in the US and Europe in Q2 2020 led to equipment shortages.
  • The global economy is expected to recover amid the COVID vaccine administration.

Demand for container freight looks set to remain at very high levels throughout the Lunar New Year, with freight rates from North Asia to the UK at all-time highs as volumes continue to rise, reports Platts.

Soaring freight rates

Importers...

https://mfame.guru/container-freight-demand-to-remain-buoyant-amid-surging-rates/

How To Tackle the South African COVID Strain?

After reports of the UK Strain, reports of a more deadly South African Strain of the coronavirus is causing havoc in the world as scientists have said that it could bypass the newly approved vaccines. Keeping that in mind, BBC’s Health Editor, Michelle Roberts investigated the South African Variant and here’s an insight into it. 

The  new variant of coronavirus circulating in South Africa is now being seen in other countries, including the UK.

Experts are urgently studying it to understand what...

https://mfame.guru/how-to-tackle-the-south-african-covid-strain/

[Watch] FDA Discusses the Pros & Cons of Emergency Vaccine Authorisation

A health worker injects a person during clinical trials for a Covid-19 vaccine at Research Centers of America in Hollywood, Florida, U.S., on Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2020. Drugmakers racing to produce Covid-19 vaccines pledged to avoid shortcuts on science as they face pressure to rush a shot to market. Photographer: Eva Marie Uzcategui/Bloomberg via Getty Images

According to a Science Magazine report, last week an advisory group to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)  raised concerns that...

https://mfame.guru/watch-fda-discusses-the-pros-cons-of-emergency-vaccine-authorisation/

Cloud Over AstraZeneca COVID19 Vaccine Related Illness

Internal AstraZeneca safety report sheds light on neurological condition suffered by vaccine trial participant

As US health authorities consider whether to allow AstraZeneca to resume the clinical trial of its coronavirus vaccine, crucial questions remain about neurological illnesses suffered by study participants who received injections of the experimental vaccine, reports CNN.

Question on the Neurological Illness?

The trial has been on hold in the United States for more than two weeks, and regulators face the task of trying to figure out if these illnesses were random and disconnected from the vaccine,...

https://mfame.guru/cloud-over-astrazeneca-covid19-vaccine-related-illness/

Johnson & Johnson COVID Vaccine 99% Efficient in Single Dose

Shares of Johnson & Johnson rally after opioid fine

There is some good news on Johnson & Johnson’s coronavirus vaccine as trials show even one dose of their vaccine is effective against the virus, reports CNN.

What the trial result shows?
  • Early results from a Phase 1/2a clinical trial show it was well tolerated and even one dose appeared to produce a strong immune response in almost all of the 800 participants.
  • The trial included two age groups: 18- to 55-year-olds and 65 and older, and looked at the safety and side effects of two different doses.

https://mfame.guru/johnson-johnson-covid-vaccine-99-efficient-in-single-dose/

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