Coronavirus vaccine: AstraZeneca says smaller dosing regime reaches 90% efficacy

AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford say their COVID-19 vaccine has an average efficacy of 70.4% after recording 131 coronavirus cases within its trial. One dosing regime regiments has shown a higher level of 90% according to the interim results. 

The more efficient dosing regime uses half a dose in the first inoculation rather than a full one. That means that more people could be vaccinated using the same amount of material. The 90% efficient regiment is of 1.5 doses rather than two. 

From the statement: 

One dosing regimen (n=2,741) showed vaccine efficacy of 90% when AZD1222 was given as a half dose, followed by a full dose at least one month apart...

Excitingly, we’ve found that one of our dosing regimens may be around 90% effective and if this dosing regime is used, more people could be vaccinated with planned vaccine supply

AstraZeneca's immunization can be stored at normal cooling temperatures. The firm is set to imminently prepare for emergency regulatory submission. Moderna announced an efficacy of 94.5% and the Pfizer/BioNTech project 95%. 

Matt Hancock, the UK's health minister, said that the vaccine is easier to administer and that Britain has 100 million doses in the pipeline. The EU also has a substantial amount of doses for its member states. 

Pound/dollar has been standing out in positively responding to immunization news. The currency pair is trading at the highest levels in two months, above 1.33. EUR/USD is also on the rise, changing hands closer to 1.19.

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