COVID-19 Update #63 for 1/13/2020

COVID-19 Vaccines
 
In an unpublished and unedited report, researchers describe how antibodies in serum from 20 people, who had received two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, neutralized SARS-CoV-2 with and without the mutation (N501Y) with similar efficacy. The N501Y mutation has been identified as causing a faster spread of the disease in the U.K. It has also been identified in the U.S.
 
The FDA approved use of any full extra doses contained in the vials of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine.  Because the vaccine does not contain preservative, the FDA advises not to pool excess vaccine from multiple vials to create one dose.
 
CureVac has signed an agreement with Bayer to help develop, distribute and market its COVID-19 vaccine candidate CVnCoV.
 
Brazilian researchers originally reported 78% efficacy for the Sinovac Biotech’s COVID-19 vaccine, but lowered the efficacy to 50.4%, when very mild cases were included in the analysis. Interim data from Brazil and Turkey have given different efficacy calculations, so the true protection of the vaccine is unclear.
 
COVID-19 Anti-Inflammatories
 
In an unpublished and unedited report of a 21-day, 803 patient, Phase IV, REMAP-COVID trial (NCT02735707), in-hospital mortality was 28% with tocilizumab (n = 353), 22% with sarilumab (n = 48), and 36% with standard care (n = 401) in patients with critical COVID-19 receiving organ support in intensive care. The number of organ support-free days were 10 for tocilizumab, 11 for sarilumab and none for standard of care.  A third of patients received remdesivir and 80% received a corticosteroid. REMAP-COVID is a sub-study of the REMAP-CAP trial.