S. Korea to run mix-and-match vaccine trial; Japan speeds up roll-out
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South Koreans at a ceremony on Wednesday marking the anniversary of the birth of Buddha at Jogye temple in Seoul. The country's vaccination campaign has been hampered by global shortages and shipment delays.
PHOTO: REUTERS
SEOUL • South Korea yesterday said it will conduct a clinical trial that mixes Covid-19 vaccine doses developed by AstraZeneca with those from Pfizer and others.
The decision comes as a growing number of countries look at using different vaccines for first and second doses amid supply delays and safety concerns that have slowed their vaccination campaigns.
A health official said the trial will include around 500 military personnel who were vaccinated with a first dose of AstraZeneca's Covid-19 shot.
The study will examine T cells - immune cells that can destroy virus-infected cells - and neutralising antibodies in those who were given a combination of doses, the health official told reporters.
The timing and size of the study has not been decided, but will involve a diverse age group.
South Korea's vaccination campaign has been hampered by global shortages and shipment delays, deepening public scepticism over Seoul's goal of reaching herd immunity by November.
It has given first doses to just over 7 per cent of its 52 million population, data from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency showed yesterday.
While South Korea experiments, its Asian neighbour Japan is paving the way for the country to speed up its slow-moving vaccination campaign ahead of July's rescheduled Olympic Games, after regulators yesterday recommended the approval of vaccines developed by Moderna and AstraZeneca.
The recommendations by a Health Ministry panel precede official approval expected from the government today, Health Minister Norihisa Tamura said.
Supplies of the Moderna doses have already been imported and are planned for use at mass vaccination centres in Tokyo and Osaka from next week.
Takeda Pharmaceutical, the country's largest drugmaker, is handling imports of about 50 million Moderna doses, enough for 25 million people.
Japan kicked off its inoculation drive in February using Pfizer's shot, the first to get local approval, but the roll-out has faced supply and other problems. The country has inoculated only 3.9 per cent of its 125 million population so far, the slowest rate among the world's larger, richer countries.
REUTERS
