South Africa has paused rollout of the AstraZeneca vaccine over concerns it will not protect people from mild-versions of the South African strain. Reading that news might make you feel panicky, as we’ve hinged all hopes of ‘returning to normal’ on successful vaccination. Take a breath – at Zee Feed, we don’t do panic. Instead, we’re arming you with the info you need to process this news story: Will the AstraZeneca vaccine be used in Australia? Which other vaccines will Australia use? And how do they differ from each other?
Here’s what you need to know about the three vaccines Australia will be rolling out:
Updated: 8 August 2021
AstraZeneca | Pfizer BioNTech | Novavax | Moderna | |
Type | Viral vector | mRNA-based | Protein | mRNA-based |
Secured Doses | 53.8 million | 40 million | 51 million | 25 million |
Effectiveness / Efficacy | Up to 75% effectiveness | Up to 97% effectiveness | 89% efficacy in UK trials; 50-60% efficacy in South African trials | Approx 94% effectiveness |
Prevent Transmission? | Up to 50% reduction of likelihood of transmitting | Up to 50% reduction of likelihood of transmitting | Early signs that this may prevent transmission in trials using monkeys | Not enough data yet. |
University of Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine
Type: Viral Vector vaccine. This administers a modified version of a similar but different virus (a vector) that has a spike protein like COVID-19 does. Our immune system registers the spike protein as something that does not belong in the body, and produces the antibodies to fight the ‘faux’ infection. Now your body knows exactly what to do if you contract actual COVID-19.
Secured Doses: 53.8 million
Effectiveness: Up to 75% protection against COVID-19, based on a real-world study in England.
Transmission: There is some evidence it may prevent transmission. Data analysis from cases in England shows that the AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines could reduce your chance of transmitting the virus by up to 50% (the study did not differentiate between the vaccines).
Pfizer BioNTech
Type: mRNA-based. The “m” stands for “messenger” – these vaccines are instructional, so they teach our body’s cells to make the spike protein (rather than bringing one in). Once the spike protein is made, our immune system recognises that it doesn’t belong and makes antibodies to fight it.
Secured Doses: 40 million (including the initial purchase of 10mill doses)
Effectiveness: Up to 97% protection against COVID-19, based on a real-world study from the US.
Transmission: Data analysis from cases in England shows that the AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines could reduce your chance of transmitting the virus by up to 50% (the study did not differentiate between the vaccines).
Novavax
Type: Protein. Introduces the harmless spike protein from the actual COVID-19 virus to the body, but not the entire virus itself. Our immune system recognises that it doesn’t belong, produces the antibodies to fight it, thus learning how to destroy the whole virus in the future.
Secured Doses: 51 million
Efficacy: UK trials showed around 89% efficacy; South African trials had between 50 – 65% efficacy. There is not yet any real-world data for Novavax to determine its effectiveness. Note: ‘Efficacy’ is results from clinical trials, ‘effectiveness’ is the results in the real world.
Transmission: There are very early signs that the Novavax vaccine may help reduce transmission in clinical trials using monkeys. However, we do not know if the same result will be seen in humans.
Moderna
Type: mRNA-based. The “m” stands for “messenger” – these vaccines are instructional, so they teach our body’s cells to make the spike protein (rather than bringing one in). Once the spike protein is made, our immune system recognises that it doesn’t belong and makes antibodies to fight it.
Secured Doses: 25 million
Effectiveness: A US study shows around 94% effectiveness at protecting against COVID-19 infection.
Transmission: There is not yet enough data examining transmission to say whether, or to what extent, the Moderna vaccine may prevent this.
For more clear, straightforward information about Australia’s COVID-19 vaccination and recovery plans, check out Healthy Headlines coverage.