EUROPE is fighting a new blazing Covid epidemic because it has resisted the AstraZeneca jab. The vaccine-maker claims that this was due to the fact that EUROPE did not receive the vaccine.
CEO Pascal Soriot said the company’s vaccine gives deeper, longer-lasting protection than those by Pfizer and Moderna.
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It is believed to give a greater boost to T-cell immunity. This means that white blood cells can seek out and destroy infected cells with Covid instead of searching for it like antibodies.
EU leaders last year launched a campaign of misinformation about the safety of the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab — and handed out tens of millions of Pfizer vaccines instead.
But now infection rates are soaring on the Continent and some countries’ intensive care figures are more than triple that of the UK.
Yesterday, as he opened his company’s £1billion research centre in Cambridge, Mr Soriot suggested Britain is set to escape the clutches of the pandemic more quickly because of the success of his jab.
He said: “In the UK there was a big peak of infections, but not so many hospitalisations relative to Europe.
“And in the UK this vaccine was used to vaccinate older people, whereas in Europe, initially, people thought the vaccine doesn’t work in older people.
“The antibody response drives the immediate defence of the body when you’re attacked by the virus.
“The T cell response takes a little longer to come in but it’s more durable, it lasts longer. And the body remembers that longer.”
Around 25million Brits have had the AstraZeneca vaccine — 51 per cent of all those who are jabbed.
But it has only been given to around 11 per cent of people in the EU, with just 67million doses used compared to 441million of Pfizer’s vaccine.
Only eight percent of doses were delivered in France by the Oxford jab. This is in addition to 11% in Germany, 16% in Belgium, and 13% in Austria.
These countries are currently being shaken by rebounding case rate and have three times the number of Covid patients in intensive health care.
ICU cases doubled in the past month in Austria, Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands — but rose only 17 per cent in the UK.
Our World in Data reports that there are 48 patients for every million in Austria, and 44 per millions in Germany. These rates are more than triple those of the UK at 14 per Million.
There are 928 people who are currently on ventilators in the UK, out of 8,088 hospitalized patients. However, the number of total patients has fallen by 900 over a fortnight.
Yesterday saw the announcement of 42,484 more cases than last week. This is an increase of 14% and also 165 deaths.
Experts say antibody protection — higher from the Pfizer vaccine — wearing off is a key reason for the resurgence.
There are also signs that the T cell response to the AstraZeneca jab is less than with AstraZeneca.
Professor Eleanor Riley, immunology and infectious disease expert at Edinburgh University, said: “It seems the Oxford AZ vaccine initially induces higher levels of T cells than the mRNA vaccines.
“These T cells are important for long-term immune memory and also for inhibiting virus replication and killing infected cells once an infection becomes established.
“T cells are therefore assumed to contribute to long-term protection against severe Covid-19.
“Since the AZ vaccine is slightly better at inducing these T cells, the implication is that it may provide longer-term protection against hospitalisation and death.”
RATTLED BY CASES
The twist of fate comes after France and other EU nations spent early 2021 sniping about the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab’s effectiveness — despite their lagging rollouts.
French President Emmanuel Macron misled the public about the dangers of the vaccine “quasi-ineffective”Just hours before the EU regulator approved its use for all adults, it was tested in older persons.
He also criticized Britain’s decision to authorize the AZ shot too soon.
Ursula von der Leyen, EU boss, made similar accusations. She claimed that the UK had slashed corners in its approval for the jab.
In March, 20 EU nations — including France and Germany — sensationally defied medical advice and halted the Oxford/AZ vaccine’s rollout over blood-clot fears.
Even though there was a rare side effect, the jab has many benefits that outweigh any risk to older patients.
Figures from the UK Health Security Agency show that the jab offers up to 99.9% protection against hospitalization and 75% against illness. These figures have been declining over time.
Experts in Britain say that the vaccine may not be the sole reason the UK is doing better than its neighbors, even though it is protecting us against serious diseases.
Professor Jonathan Ball, a virologist at Nottingham University, said: “I think the real reason we are seeing stable case numbers in the UK and escalating numbers in many parts of the EU is more to do with levels of population immunity.
“In the UK we have been seeing high virus circulation when we came out of lockdown in summer, and that has generated relatively high levels of immunity in younger people.
“Most older people have gained immunity from vaccination. In some EU countries, this was not true.
“This means our population is generally less susceptible to infection and serious disease.”
The World Health Organization has warned that Europe’s latest Covid wave could send the death toll from its current 1.5million to as high as 2.2million by the spring.
The continent is located in “firm grip”It stated that daily deaths from the virus have increased by two-thirds since September to 4,200.
Dr Hans Kluge, European chief of the WHO, advised people to adhere to social distancing in order to avoid locking them down.
He said: “To live with this virus and continue our daily lives, we need to take a ‘vaccine plus’ approach.
‘POSITIVE IMPACT’
“This means getting the standard doses of vaccine, a booster if offered, as well as incorporating preventive measures — wearing a mask, washing hands, ventilating indoor spaces and keeping physical distance.”
Austria is now under lockdown. Other countries may also consider similar measures.
French minister Véronique Trillet-Lenoir said: “We have to think about reinforcing precautionary measures. We should do that in a coordinated way across the EU.”
Mr Soriot’s comments came as he welcomed Prince Charles to open AstraZeneca’s new lab.
Since the pandemic, two billion doses have been produced by the company’s Covid vaccine, and they have been delivered to more than 170 nations.
The Prince of Wales said: “Throughout the pandemic I have greatly admired the dedicated commitment of the entire AstraZeneca team.
“You have developed and delivered a vaccine for the world — in a remarkably short timescale — which will continue to have a positive impact on communities and society for years to come.”
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