University of Bradford to host COVID-19 vaccine booster trial
1st June 2021
The University of Bradford has announced that it will host COVID-19 vaccine booster trials at its Digital Health Enterprise Zone.
The trial, which will last one year, is set to test the jabs as a possible precaution against variants of concern.
It is being conducted by Bradford Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in partnership with the University, as part of a £90m Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) initiative.
Across the UK, the trials are being conducted at 18 sites in total and will involve 3,000 people, with 148 of those to be treated in Bradford.
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This week the UK passed the milestone of having given 10 million people a second COVID-19 vaccine dose. This means that over 20% of UK adults are now fully vaccinated against the coronavirus.
The effects are beginning to show. COVID-19 cases, hospitalisations and deaths have fallen drastically as vaccine coverage has ramped up. But importantly, rates for all of these measures have declined more steeply among older age groups where the majority are fully vaccinated. This shows Britain’s improvement isn’t just down to lockdown.
Politicians moved this week to protect these gains. After initial success in controlling the virus, India has seen cases soar again, and in response, the UK government added the country to its “red list”, essentially banning travel there. The concern is not just about case numbers, but also a variant of the virus now taking hold in India: B1617.
After being safely administered to millions of adults around the world, new data shows that the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is effective in teenagers as well. A US trial of more than 2,000 12-15 year olds found that the vaccine had an efficacy rate of 100% and produced a strong antibody response, according to a press release from Pfizer. That’s good news, as children will eventually need to be vaccinated to prevent infection, says paediatrician James B Wood.
These results follow earlier positive results relating to the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines during and after pregnancy. A small study of pregnant and breastfeeding women who had been given the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines found they too produced a robust immune response, and that vaccinated mothers were also able to pass on immunity to their newborns. Immunologists Catherine Thornton and April Rees explain here how it works.
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