AstraZeneca Vaccine Lags Behind Pfizer and Moderna Success

The pressure was on AstraZeneca Plc and the University of Oxford after stunning Covid-19 vaccine trial results from Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc., and the U.K. partners delivered, even if they couldn’t match the data from the two front-runners.

Scientists will now closely scrutinize the preliminary results. The report is significant because Astra and Oxford are taking a different approach from the one used by Pfizer and Moderna, and vaccine advocates say multiple shots will be needed to stop a contagion that’s killed almost 1.4 million people. Here’s what we know, and what the results could mean in the battle.

The Astra-Oxford vaccine on average prevented 70% of cases in large trials in the U.K. and Brazil. The results combined data from two different dosing regimens, which may leave questions open about the best way to give the shot. One regimen showed efficacy of 90%, while another yielded 62% efficacy. The numbers together couldn’t meet the high bar set by Pfizer and partner BioNTech SE, which unveiled findings showing their shot was 95% effective. Results from Moderna suggested its vaccine was equally strong.

Bloomberg Quicktake brings you live global news and original shows spanning business, technology, politics and culture. Make sense of the stories changing your business and your world.

Connect with us on…

[polygamous]

on ethics alone this is a No brainer, a big US pharma company their only "Morality money" versus one of the Best universities in the world developing a Vaccine to help the world,