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 The study by Pfizer and scientists from the University of Texas
Medical Branch, which has not yet been peer-reviewed, indicated the
vaccine was effective in neutralizing virus with the so-called N501Y
mutation of the spike protein.
The mutation could be responsible for greater transmissibility and
there had been concern it could also make the virus escape antibody
neutralization elicited by the vaccine, said Phil Dormitzer, one of
Pfizer's top viral vaccine scientists.
The first results of tests on the variants offer a glimmer of hope
while more studies are carried out as Britain and other countries
try to tame the more infectious variants which authorities believe
are driving a surge in infections that could overwhelm healthcare
systems.
The Pfizer-BioNTech study was conducted on blood taken from people
who had been given the vaccine. Its findings are limited because it
does not look at the full set of mutations found in either of the
new variants of the rapidly spreading virus.
Dormitzer said it was encouraging that the vaccine appears effective
against the mutation, as well as 15 other mutations the company has
previously tested against.
"So we've now tested 16 different mutations, and none of them have
really had any significant impact. That's the good news," he said.
"That doesn't mean that the 17th won't."
Dormitzer said another mutation found in the South African variant,
called the E484K mutation, was also concerning.
The researchers plan to run similar tests to establish whether the
vaccine is effective against other mutations found in the British
and South African variants and hope to have more data within weeks.
The variants are said by scientists to be more transmissible than
previously dominant ones, but they are not thought to cause more
serious illness.
Scientists said the results of the study would help calm concerns
that people will not be protected by vaccines being given to
millions of people around the world in the fight against the
pandemic, which has killed more than 1.8 million people and roiled
economies.
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 But they cautioned that more
clinical tests and data are still needed to come
to a definitive conclusion.
"This is good news, mainly because it is not bad news," said Stephen
Evans, professor of pharmacoepidemiology, London School of Hygiene &
Tropical Medicine.
"So, yes this is good news, but it does not yet give us total
confidence that the Pfizer (or other) vaccines will definitely give
protection."
TESTS AND TWEAKS
AstraZeneca, Moderna and CureVac are also testing whether their
shots work against the fast-spreading variants. They have said they
expect them to be effective, but the timing of those studies are not
known.
A senior British lawmaker expressed concerns in an interview on
Friday that COVID-19 vaccines might not work properly against the
South African variant. He was not responding to questions about
Friday's data.
The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine and the one from Moderna Inc, which use
synthetic messenger RNA technology, can be quickly tweaked to
address new mutations of a virus if necessary. Scientists have
suggested the changes could be made in as little as six weeks.
The variant is not the first of the pandemic to emerge and Eleanor
Riley, professor of immunology and infectious disease at the
University of Edinburgh, said these types of study will be needed as
they appear.
"It may be necessary to tweak the vaccine over time," she said.
(Reporting by Michael Erman; Writing by Josephine Mason; Editing by
Bill Berkrot, Edwina Gibbs and Timothy Heritage)
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