Tuberculosis BCG vaccine joins global Covid-19 trial

Trials on the effectiveness of existing tuberculosis (TB) vaccines in protecting people from the new coronavirus have begun in Africa.

South Africa vaccinated health workers in a clinical trial on Monday in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Known as TASK, Cape Town’s clinical research organization conducted trials at Tigerberg Hospital, the officially designated Covid-19 treatment center.

Scientists have used the Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine to determine if booster shots reduce the likelihood of infection and the severity of symptoms.

The news was published with Kenyan researchers working with international responders in search of a cure for the virus that causes respiratory disease, along with plans for clinical trials of three drugs.

Since South Africa inoculates all newborns with BCG, this study shows that reinoculation with BCG reduces the probability of infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus (the virus that causes Covid-19) and / or the severity of disease symptoms The purpose is to determine whether the task, in a statement, to help reduce the effects of the pandemic.

“The main purpose of this study is to determine whether re-vaccination with BCG reduces disease severity, hospitalization, and mortality in front-line workers who come into direct contact with patients.”

Developed 100 years ago at the Pasteur Institute in France, the BCG vaccine is one of the oldest and most trusted vaccinations in the world.

Although given primarily to protect infants from tuberculosis for nearly a century, it has also been shown to protect against other infections, encouraging scientists to investigate whether they can protect against coronaviruses.

In this study, 250 BCG booster shots were administered to 250 healthcare workers, and another 250 received a dummy prescription or placebo.

According to TASK, the test is primarily intended for healthcare professionals and results will be published if sufficiently positive.

Desperate cures and cures to avoid the decade-old tuberculosis vaccine Covid-19 pandemic, named two French microbiologists able to prevent the latest infections We sought.

Last Wednesday, American biopharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences announced that its drug, Remdesivir, has reduced the time it takes patients to recover from Covid-19.

All data from the study were published in a statement by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Rendescivir is a broad spectrum antiviral drug.

Researchers in Australia, Spain, and the Netherlands are testing the idea that vaccines can have a wide range of powers to boost the immune system against the new coronavirus.

The Australian organization behind the study, the Murdoch Children’s Institute in Melbourne (MCRI), said Tuesday that the BRACE trial would extend from 2,500 in Australia alone to more than 10,000 frontline workers in Europe.

The BRACE trial, led by Nigel Curtis, was one of two clinical trials globally identified by the World Health Organization (WHO). Evidence will be evaluated as it becomes available.

Thanks to a $ 6.5 million donation from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (about 692 million Sh), the MCRI team will test the effects of BCG in the heart of the current pandemic.

“We’re expanding the study to Europe, because there are more cases now that can get faster results,” Curtis said.

“We plan to hire health care workers who are most likely to come in contact with Covid-19 patients, so it will not only be doctors and nurses in the hospital, but also ambulance crews and ambulance drivers. “

In the United States, a Boston research group wants to test the vaccine in front-line healthcare workers for the same purpose.

Interest has arisen from years of multiple studies showing that vaccines have what are known as “off-target” benefits.

The BCG vaccine, named after two French microbiologists, is the causative agent of tuberculosis, M. a widely administered vaccine worldwide.

Because BCG protects babies from some viral infections in addition to TB, researchers compared data from countries with and without the essential BCG vaccination, and vaccination policies suggest Covid-19 Checked to see if it was related to number or severity.

Several preprint publications in the last two months have pointed out that countries with ongoing BCG vaccination programs have lower Covid-19 mortality rates than countries with lower mortality rates.

For example, one study found that compulsory BCG was associated with a marked slow rise in both confirmed cases and deaths during the first 30 days of development.

Another model models mortality in 24 countries and reports that those without Italy’s BCG universal vaccination, such as Italy, the United States, and the Netherlands, are more affected by pandemics than those with universal vaccination. doing.

Global interest in the impact of BCG and potential use for Covid-19 has recently increased, but health authorities, including WHO, had no evidence that it would provide any protection due to lack of clinical trials. I immediately pointed out that against the virus.

“There is evidence from animal and human studies that BCG vaccines have nonspecific effects on the immune system. These effects are not well characterized and their clinical relevance is unknown.” WHO said in a statement last month.

At that time, WHO said BCG should not be used against Covid-19 due to the risk of depleting the supply of drugs used for newborn vaccination in countries with high incidence of tuberculosis.

“BCG vaccination prevents the severity of tuberculosis in children, and diversion of local supplies may not vaccinate newborns, resulting in increased TB disease and death,” WHO said.