Pharmafile.com’s weekly COVID-19 news round-up
pharmafile | March 3, 2021 | News story | Research and Development |Â Â Â
The past week has continued to see positive COVID-19 news; COVAX has delivered their first batch of vaccines to Africa, CN Bio has received a government grant to develop new models for COVID-19 research, and a study of over-80s after just one dose of the Pfizer or AstraZeneca vaccine has shown a dramatic fall in hospitalisations in the age group.
1. Single Pfizer or AstraZeneca vaccine dose drastically reduces COVID-19 hospitalisations in over-80s – Published 02/03/2021
A single dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca or the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine reduces UK hospitalisations in over-80s by 80%, a Public Health England study has shown.
2. CN Bio receives UK government grant to develop single and multi-organ models for COVID-19 research – Published 02/03/21
CN Bio, a leading developer of single and multi-organ microphysiological systems (MPS), has received a grant from innovation agency Innovate UK to develop human-relevant MPS to advance investigations into COVID-19 infection.
3. FDA approves Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use – Published 01/03/21
The FDA has issued emergency use authorisation for Johnson & Johnson’s one-shot COVID-19 vaccine, approving the jab for use in individuals aged 18 and older in the US.
4. GSK’s Phase II otilimab study on COVID-19 patients promising for over-70s – Published – 26/02/21
GlaxoSmithKline’s (GSK) Phase II OSCAR study of their otilimab antibody’s effect on COVID-19 patients has shown promising results in older people, the company announced yesterday.
5. Ghana is first African country to receive COVID-19 vaccines from COVAX – Published 25/02/21
The COVAX Facility have delivered their first batch of COVID-19 vaccines to Africa, with 600,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine arriving in Accra, Ghana yesterday.
