One dose of AstraZeneca vaccine.

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Olivier Chassignole / AP / SIPA

The British vaccine developed by Oxford and AstraZeneca offers "limited protection against moderate forms of the disease (Covid-19) caused by the South African variant, in young adults", a South African study revealed on Sunday, which did not is not focused on serious forms.

"South African and British researchers have found that (...) the vaccine was much more effective against the original (strain) of the coronavirus" than against the variant, it is stated in a press release on the study of the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, which has yet to be peer reviewed.

AstraZeneca defends itself

"The first results seem to confirm that the virus mutation detected in South Africa can be transmitted to the population already vaccinated", he added.

This study, carried out on 2,000 volunteers aged on average 31 years, does not "make it possible to rule" on the effectiveness of the vaccine against severe forms of the disease, hospitalizations and deaths "because the target population was at low risk. “, Judges the University of the Witwatersrand.

"We believe that our vaccine will still protect against severe forms of the disease, because the activity of neutralizing antibodies is similar to that of other Covid-19 vaccines that have been shown to be effective against severe forms, especially when the doses are spaced 8 to 12 weeks apart ”, qualified a spokesperson for AstraZeneca, contacted by AFP.

A new version of the vaccine in preparation

According to Sarah Gilbert, a researcher leading vaccine development at the University of Oxford, it may also take "some time" before the effectiveness of the vaccine can be determined against this strain - which is increasingly present in the UK. - in the elderly.

"A version (of the Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine) with the South African variant sequence is in preparation," Sarah Gilbert told the BBC on Sunday morning, adding that researchers "would very much like" it to be ready for the fall. .

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