South African scientists have produced their own version of Moderna’s Covid vaccine. It is stated that this development may contribute to the increase in vaccination rates in Africa.
Currently, the lowest vaccination rate in the world is in Africa.
Afrigen Biologics, the company that developed the vaccine, says it will begin clinical trials in November.
The American company Moderna has previously announced that it will waive its patent rights for the mRNA vaccine. This is how South African experts were able to develop their own version of the vaccine. The World Health Organization (WHO) also supported the vaccine studies.
Petro Terblanche, President of Afrigen Biologics, said they started small, but hoped to go into production on a large scale.
“We used the same sequence as the Moderna vaccine. It’s an attempt to help low- and middle-income countries become self-sufficient,” said Terblanche.
Like Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech uses genetic mRNA technology in its vaccines.
Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines are the first vaccines approved for use worldwide.
In this technology, weakened or inactive virus is not injected into the body. Instead, cells in the body are taught to produce proteins that will trigger an immune system response.
Afrigen Biologics chief expert Dr. “This development is very important because it gives Africans the opportunity to produce their own vaccines in the future and to be prepared for the next pandemics,” said Caryn Fenner of the vaccine they developed.
Most African countries have a vaccination rate of less than 10 percent. In Europe, North America, Australia and China, this rate is around 80 percent.
Meanwhile, it is stated that BioNTech plans to open a vaccine production facility in Africa.
