A single-dose regime of the Covid vaccine candidate developed by Janssen has proved 66% effective in phase 3 trials.
The UK has already pre-ordered 30 million doses of the vaccine, which can now be reviewed by the MHRA for regulatory approval.
Commenting on the Janssen trials, which included 6,000 UK-based participants, the UK Government said a single-dose vaccine ‘would offer a significant advantage during a global pandemic emergency’.
However, further trials are ongoing to see if a two-dose regimen offers greater protection or durability.
Meanwhile, the Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid vaccine, which is already part of the UK’s vaccination campaign, has now also been approved by the European medicines regulator, according to a BBC breaking news report this afternoon.
The EU has bought 400 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, however the parties have recently been in a disagreement about supply in the early stages of the vaccination rollout.
Meanwhile, German authorities have advised that the Oxford jab should not be used in over-65s amid a lack of data on efficacy. However, AstraZeneca and the UK Government have both rebutted claims.
