The Johnson & Johnson vaccine against Covid-19 is 66% effective overall, but less so in South Africa, a country where a more transmissible variant of the coronavirus is spreading.

The product, which requires only one injection, can be stored at refrigerator temperatures.

The Johnson & Johnson vaccine against Covid-19 is 66% effective in general, but less in South Africa, a country where a more transmissible variant of the coronavirus is spreading, the US pharmaceutical industry said in a statement Friday.

The vaccine, which requires only one injection, is 85% effective in preventing severe forms of the disease, according to a major clinical trial.

As a result, Johnson & Johnson are expected to apply for an emergency distribution authorization in the United States as early as next week.

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Two vaccines against Covid-19 are currently in circulation: that of Moderna, and of Pfizer-BioNTech.

The potential addition of a new vaccine comes as the United States seeks to accelerate its rate of immunization, the target of new President Joe Biden having been set at 1.5 million doses injected per day.

The group has undertaken to ship 100 million doses sent to the United States before the end of June, around 200 million doses to the European Union before the end of the year, with the first deliveries in April, and about 200 million doses to developing countries, with the first shipments starting after June.

Like the vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, the vaccine from "J&J" delivers genetic instructions to cells in the human body to create a specific protein for the coronavirus, which in turn helps train the immune system to respond appropriately to the real thing. virus.

But the Johnson & Johnson vaccine can be stored at refrigerator temperatures rather than deep freezers, making it easy to distribute.