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Oxford study says, mixing COVID-19 vaccines could generate robust immune response

The study, published on the Lancet pre-print server, says mixed doses of these vaccines induced high concentrations of antibodies against the SARS-CoV2 spike IgG protein when they were given four weeks apart.

Oxford study says, mixing COVID-19 vaccines could generate robust immune response
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According to a study by Oxford University, alternating doses of the AstraZeneca and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines generate robust immune responses against the coronavirus.

A mix-and-match approach to COVID-19 vaccines -- using different brands of jab for first and second doses -- gives good protection against the pandemic virus, a UK study has found.

The study, published on the Lancet pre-print server, says mixed doses of these vaccines induced high concentrations of antibodies against the SARS-CoV2 spike IgG protein when they were given four weeks apart.

Moreover, the study indicated that all possible vaccination schedules involving the Oxford-AstraZeneca and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines could potentially be used against coronavirus disease.

The Com-Cov trial looked at the efficacy of either two doses of Pfizer, two of AstraZeneca, or one of them followed by the other. It came to light that all combinations worked well, priming the immune system.

Meanwhile, experts say that this could offer flexibility for vaccine rollout.

Also Read: Study to understand the efficacy of mixing two COVID-19 vaccines to begin in a month

The results show that when given at a four-week interval both mixed schedules induce an immune response that is above the threshold set by the standard schedule of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine.

However, the study found that the immune responses differed according to the order of immunisation, with the Oxford-AstraZeneca shot followed by the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine generating the better immune response out of the two mixed schedules.

Besides, these results are an invaluable guide to the use of mixed dose schedules, but the interval of four weeks studied is shorter than the eight to 12-week schedule most commonly used for the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.

Earlier, VK Paul, member-health of the Niti Aayog, informed that a mix and match of vaccines for the coronavirus is unlikely to happen in India anytime soon.

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