Single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine provides strong protection against Covid, large study finds

UK has pre-ordered 30 million doses of the jab as countries struggle with supply shortages

The one-shot vaccine manufactured by Janssen, of Johnson & Johnson, has been shown to generate high levels of protection against coronavirus, according to the company’s phase 3 trial results.

In a global study of more than 44,000 participants, the jab was 66 per cent effective in preventing moderate to severe cases of Covid-19. “There were no cases of hospitalisation or death among those volunteers who had received the vaccine,” the US firm said.

This efficacy rate fall shorts of the protection induced by Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine rivals – BioNTech/Pfizer, Moderna and Oxford/AstraZeneca – but the single-dose approach will make it an appealing option for governments rushing to inoculate their populations in the face of rising global cases.

“This is a single shot that can be given easily, it protects completely from that which we fear, having to go to the emergency room or a hospital,” said Mathai Mammen, head of global research and development for J&J’s pharmaceutical division. “It’s going to change the nature of the disease.”

The UK has pre-ordered 30 million doses of the vaccine, and the news comes after Novavax announced that their own two-shot jab was 89 per cent effective.

“This is yet more good news from Janssen on vaccines,” the health secretary, Matt Hancock, tweeted on Friday.

“If this jab is approved, this could significantly bolster our vaccination programme, especially as a single-dose vaccine.

“Once the full data has been submitted to the Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, they will consider the evidence to determine whether the vaccine meets robust standards of safety, effectiveness & quality.”

J&J, the world’s largest healthcare company, conducted trials in multiple countries as part of its large-scale study – all of which showed some discrepancies in results. While the jab’s efficacy rate stood at 57 per cent in South Africa, it was slightly higher in Latin America, at 62 per cent, and higher still in the US, at 72 per cent.

It means the vaccine has shown some protection against the 501.V2 Covid variant, which first emerged in South Africa – hours after Novavax published results suggesting its jab was not as effective against the fast-spreading virus.

In a small study held in South Africa, the efficacy of Novavax’s vaccine dropped to under 50 per cent, with the company announcing plans to  trial new vaccines designed specifically to tackle the 501.V2. J&J, on the other hand, has unveiled no such plans. 

Alex Gorsky, J&J’s chief executive, called the results a “critical milestone” and said the company intends to file for an emergency use authorisation in early February in the US which, if successful, means it will begin shipping vaccines immediately.  

J&J has said it expects to be able to produce 1 billion doses of vaccine a year, which is enough to protect 1 billion people, but America’s Operation Warp Speed has previously warned there would not be a sizeable pool of supplies available in the US until April.

“Our goal all along has been to create a simple, effective solution for the largest number of people possible, and to have maximum impact to help end the pandemic,” Mr Gorsky said on Friday.

A separate figure in the trial showed the vaccine was 85 per cent effective at preventing severe Covid-19, as opposed to the “moderate to severe” classification. J&J said it offered “complete protection” (100 per cent) from hospitalisation and death 28 days after the jab, and protection was consistent across age groups, including the over-60s.

Adding to its pragmatism as a single-dose shot, the Janssen vaccine does not require ultra-cold temperatures for transportation and storage. Instead it can be kept at 2 to 8C for up to three months. It is also cheap, costing about £7 ($10) a dose, offering hope to poorer nations currently struggling to obtain vaccines.

Commending the vaccine, Paul Stoffels, chief scientific officer at J&J, said “a one-shot vaccine is considered by the World Health Organisation to be the best option in pandemic settings” because they “enhance access, distribution and compliance”. 

Dr Anthony Fauci, America’s top infectious diseases expert, said on Friday that he would “make an effort to get an mRNA vaccine” – like Pfizer or Moderna – before he got the J&J one, but acknowledged the newly-developed jab has its advantages. 

“A vaccine that’s inexpensive, that’s a single dose, and that has no cold chain requirements – that’s pretty good,” he told CNN.

J&J’s inoculation news comes amid a row between the EU, the UK and AstraZeneca over a shortfall in the EU’s supply of the Oxford coronavirus vaccine. 

The Union has demanded doses be sent from British plants to make up for a “significant” shortage – but the healthcare giant has said it is only contractually obliged to meet the EU’s supply demands to its “best effort” which, it says, it is doing.