Britain’s new R21/Matrix-M vaccine, developed by researchers at Oxford University, has been shown to be 77% effective in preventing malaria, and inexpensive to manufacture. It is the first time that a vaccine has exceeded the efficacy target set by the World Health Organization (WHO) at 75%.
This serum could represent a turning point in the fight against the disease, said an international research team, in the journal Lancet Infectious Diseases. For the group that received the highest dose, the effectiveness of the vaccine increased to 80%, according to the results of a phase 2 trial published Thursday, September 8. For the lowest dose, the efficacy was 70%.
For the study, 450 children aged 5-17 months in Burkina Faso, where malaria accounts for around 22% of all deaths, received three doses in 2019. Ahead of the 2020 rainy season, 409 children returned to receive a booster shot. One month after receiving this booster, antimalarial antibodies returned to a level similar to that seen after the first doses received, according to the study.
“It’s fantastic to see such high efficacy after a single booster dose”
Halidou Tinto, from the Burkina Faso Health Research Instituteat AFP
Another vaccine produced by British pharmaceutical giant GSK last year became the first malaria vaccine to be recommended for widespread use by the world health organization. It has since been given to more than one million children in Africa.
But the effectiveness of GSK’s vaccine would decline dramatically over time, even with a booster dose. Halindou Tinto, who was involved in the trial of the two malaria vaccines, said GSK’s vaccine had an optimal efficacy of around 60%. “I can therefore confirm that R21 [le vaccin d’Oxford] is much more effectivehe said at a press conference.
“We could see a very substantial reduction in this horrible burden of malaria, a reduction in deaths and illnesses in the years to come, certainly by 2030”, for his part said Adrian Hill, a vaccine specialist at Oxford and co-author of the study. According to him, a 70% decrease in malaria deaths could be achievable within that timeframe, in part thanks to the large number of vaccine doses that can be produced quickly. Oxford has partnered for this with the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer, the Serum Institute of India.
The Institute “wishes and is able to manufacture 200 million doses per year starting next year”, said Mr. Hill. And Oxford’s vaccine would cost a few US dollars per dose, half the $9 for GSK’s version, he added, raising hopes that this cheap vaccine could be produced on a large scale in a few years.
The results of a phase 3 trial involving 4,800 participants in four countries are expected this year, which could potentially lead to approval of the vaccine. After 60 years of fruitless research, hope is rising against this scourge which has killed 627,000 people – mainly African children – in 2020 alone.