A third shot of the Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine produces a strong immune response, researchers said on June 28, adding there was not yet evidence that such shots were needed, especially given shortages in some countries.

Novavax

Novavax Inc.’s experimental Covid-19 vaccine showed immune response and protection against the highly contagious coronavirus variant originally identified in South Africa in a clinical trial.

After months of bad news regarding Covid-19 vaccine manufacturing issues, Emergent BioSolutions posted positive two-year data related to the company’s investigational chikungunya virus virus-like particle (CHIKV VLP) vaccine candidate.

Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine generates antibody responses three-and-a-half times larger in older people when a second dose is delayed to 12 weeks after the first, a British study said.

A second-generation Covid-19 vaccine developed by CureVac and GlaxoSmithKline – designed to protect against coronavirus variants – produced a high level of immune response in a trial in rats, the companies said on May 13.

Giving a first dose of Covid-19 vaccine but delaying a second dose among people younger than 65 could lead to fewer people dying of the disease, but only if certain conditions are met, a predictive modelling study showed.

Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc. said the company’s Covid-19 vaccine candidate was safe, well-tolerated and produced immune response against the new coronavirus in a mid-stage clinical trial, sending the drug developer’s shares up over 3 percent.

A single dose of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine may not generate a sufficient immune response to protect against dominant new variants, except in people who have already been infected with Covid-19, according to a UK study published on April 30.

Merck

Merck & Co. Inc. said on April 27 the company had partnered with five Indian generic drugmakers, including Cipla Ltd. and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., to expand production and access to the experimental Covid-19 drug molnupiravir.

One dose of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine offers an immune response similar to that generated by infection and could also offer protection from variants to people who have previously had the virus, a British study said on March 26.