The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has recommended the approval of Novavax’s protein vaccine, which contains an artificial version of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and the adjuvant Matrix-M, which makes cells more permeable with nanoparticles. The EU Commission’s approval is the only remaining step before the new vaccine can be used to protect people over the age of 18 from Covid-19. Novavax’s protein vaccine is the fifth vaccine to be approved in the European Union, following mRNA vaccines from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna, as well as vector vaccines from AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson.
The protein vaccine from Novavax is the first to use tiny particles made from an artificial version of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Experts hope that people who distrust the currently available technologies will also be vaccinated with the protein vaccine. According to a representative Cosmo survey from early December, vaccine opponents consider inactivated vaccines to be safer. Novavax belongs to these types of vaccines, depending on the definition. The immunization is carried out with two doses of the Novavax vaccine, which are administered three weeks apart. The immune system responds by producing antibodies, but the second part of the immune response, the T-cell response, is triggered by the new adjuvant Matrix-M, which makes cells more permeable with nanoparticles and significantly improves the protective effect.
The EU Commission has already ordered 100 million doses of the Novavax vaccine, which are expected to be delivered by the end of 2022. There is also an option for an additional 100 million doses until the end of 2023. The German Federal Ministry of Health (BMG) has also included the new vaccine in its planning for 2022. The effectiveness of Novavax’s protective effect against the new Omicron variant is currently unknown.
