According to the new data, the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine is 92% effective against the Delta variant, and 86% against the Alpha variant
AstraZeneca Cambridge R&D Centre aerial view. (Credit: AstraZeneca.)
AstraZeneca has announced that its Covid-19 vaccine offers enhanced levels of protection against the Delta variant (B.1.617.2), earlier known as the Indian variant.
New real-world data from Public Health England (PHE) showed that two doses of Covid-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca are 92% effective against hospitalisation due to the Delta variant, with no deaths reported.
The vaccine showed a high level of effectiveness against the Alpha variant (B.1.1.7), with an 86% reduction of hospitalisations and no deaths reported.
Also, the vaccine demonstrated effectiveness against symptomatic disease, with 74% against the Alpha variant and 64% against the Delta variant.
AstraZeneca biopharmaceuticals R&D executive vice president Mene Pangalos said: “This real-world evidence shows that Covid-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca provides a high level of protection against the Delta variant, which is currently a critical area of concern given its rapid transmission.
“The data show that the vaccine will continue to have a significant impact around the world given that it continues to account for the overwhelming majority of supplies to India and the COVAX facility.”
The analysis included 14,019 cases of the Delta variant, of which 166 were hospitalised, and required emergency hospital admissions in England.
Delta variant is a key contributor to the current wave of infection in the Indian subcontinent and beyond and is responsible for the recent surge in Covid-19 cases in the UK.
The WHO Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization (SAGE) has recommended the AstraZeneca vaccine in countries where new variants are prevalent.
Developed by the University of Oxford and its spin-out company, Vaccitech, the Covid-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca leverages a weakened version of a common cold virus (adenovirus) and the genetic material of the SARS-CoV-2 virus spike protein.
Previously called AZD1222, the vaccine was granted authorisation for conditional marketing or emergency use in more than 80 countries across six continents.
AstraZeneca claims that it has supplied more than 500 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine to 165 countries worldwide, including more than 100 countries through the COVAX facility.