Covid-19 vaccines developed by Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech significantly appear less effective against the Covid variant that first emerged in South Africa, finds a new study.
The study, published in the journal Nature, indicated that the percentage of protective antibodies that neutralised the variant -- B.1.351 -- was 12.4 times lower for Moderna's Covid-19 shot, while Pfizer's vaccine was found to be 10.3 times lower.
According to the researchers, including Manoj S Nair from Columbia University Irving Medical Center in the US, multiple vaccine constructs have shown promise, including two with 95 per cent protective efficacy against Covid-19. However, these interventions were directed toward the initial SARS-CoV-2 that emerged in 2019.