It mainly looked like a publicity stunt. Amid a heated argument between the European Union and pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, the maker of the Russian corona vaccine Sputnik V made an apparently nice offer. The EU could receive 100 million doses of Sputnik V in the second quarter of this year.
This could fill the huge gap created by a setback in AstraZeneca’s delivery schedule. The EU will not receive 80 million doses from that company, but 31 million by the end of March. Nevertheless, everyone feels that the EU will not respond to the Russian gesture anytime soon. Why not?
This is how the manufacturer of Sputnik-V announced the offer to the European Union:
First of all, one reason why it wouldn’t be so crazy to include Sputnik V in the vaccine range: it is a so-called vector vaccine, just like AstraZeneca’s shot. In general, this is a proven vaccine type, the efficacy of which has been proven.
A vector vaccine consists of a harmless adenovirus that contains the genetic code of the coronavirus. Once injected, the vaccine triggers the production of spike proteins that create a natural defense against future contamination by the virus in our body.
Complicated? In the video we show you how vaccines work and what the difference is between vector and rna vaccines:
In addition, a new benefit has been added this week, as Sputnik V will be available next month in a form where a single shot is enough to protect against the corona virus. The manufacturer sees this so-called Sputnik Light as an emergency solution for countries with a lot of infections, because it goes much faster if people do not need a second dose.
There are also disadvantages to vector vaccines. For example, they are not useful in people with weakened immune systems.
Europe not keen
Sputnik V is one of dozens of covid-19 vaccines in development. The drug is in an advanced stage of the phase 3 study, which is examining whether it is effective enough in a large number of subjects. The Russian authorities have already approved the vaccine for use in exceptional cases, so that vaccination could start in Russia itself. According to the Sputnik V website, the complete phase 3 results will be published shortly.
Europe is a different story. The manufacturer of Sputnik V submitted a request for approval to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) on January 20. But according to Anke Huckriede, professor of vaccinology at the UMCG, the EMA will only evaluate and possibly approve the drug after the phase-3 studies have been completed and published.
So they don’t wait for that in Russia itself. Moscow already launched a large-scale vaccination program with Sputnik V in December last year, after the shot received medical approval from the Russian drug agency in the summer. In practice, the vaccination program is progressing less well and the government has stopped publishing vaccination figures. But Russia’s eagerness to circumvent normal scientific procedures drew much criticism in the West.
Nevertheless, the Russians manage to sell the drug abroad. Argentina has already received more than half a million doses and started vaccinating healthcare workers in December. Even the president has had the shot. Countries such as Egypt, Nepal and Mexico also purchase tens of millions of doses.
Things will certainly not go that fast in Europe, at least until the phase 3 studies have been completed. Except in Hungary. That country, which has been sailing its own course within Europe for some time under the leadership of Prime Minister Orbán, has approved Sputnik V and has already ordered 2 million doses. Hungary also buys 5 million doses of a vaccine from the Chinese Sinopharm, which is also not approved by Europe.
There is also a well-known Dutchman who dares to take the Spoetnik V shot:
Until all clinical trials are completed, the question remains how safe and effective Sputnik V is. According to Moscow, the shot is 92 percent effective at protecting against covid-19.
But the longer the demand for vaccines remains dire and the promised deliveries lag behind, the greater the temptation for the EU to look at Sputnik V after all. Just yesterday, the Russian vaccine received unexpected support from doctor Alain Fischer, head of the French national vaccination program. He said that for both the Russian and Chinese vaccines, if they are safe and work, Europe should consider using them.