The first COVID-19 vaccine to win emergency use authorization in the U.S. is highly effective for at least six months after the second dose. Developed jointly by Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) and BioNTech (NSDQ: BNTX), the BNT162b2 vaccine
The durability of COVID-19 vaccines had been something of an open question, although early clinical data suggested that Moderna’s mRNA-1273 COVID-19 vaccine was effective for at least 90 days after the second dose.
Pfizer plans on releasing more data related to the long-term vaccine immunogenicity in the coming weeks.
Pfizer and BioNTech plan on doing two years of follow-up for their Phase 3 vaccine trial.
Earlier this year, the two companies released data indicating that their vaccine also remains effective against a highly-transmissible SARS-CoV-2 variant first identified in South Africa.
Pfizer and BioNTech are also testing the vaccine on adolescents. Recent data suggest that the vaccine is 100% effective in adolescents aged 12 to 15 years old.
The companies are planning to file for full FDA approval of the vaccine as soon as this month. The vaccine would be the first to win that status.
Pfizer and BioNTech also recently announced that they aim to boost annual production of COVID-19 vaccine doses to 2.5 billion doses by the end of the year. Some 1.4 billion doses have already been ordered in purchase agreements.
BioNTech also announced that it is working on lyophilized and ready-to-use liquid formulations of the vaccine. Both would be easier to distribute than the current formulation, which requires ultracold storage. The ready-to-use formulation could be available in the second half of the year.