A new research carried out by a team of world renowned scientists including two local scientists and researchers from Ministry of Health has determined that the single dose of Sputnik-V is highly immunogenic.
The team has also highlighted that the administration of a second dose of the Sputnik-V is likely to be beneficial.
The scientists from the Sri Jayewardenepura University investigated the immune responses of the first dose of the Sputnik light, in a Sri Lankan population, 4 weeks after receiving the first dose and compared the immune responses with first dose of AztraZeneca.
Accordingly, the first dose of Sputnik-V vaccine was shown to induce an overall seroconversion rate of 88.7%, with significantly lower seroconversion rates (81.8%) and SARS-CoV-2 specific antibody levels in individuals over 60 years of age. It induced ACE2-receptor blocking antibodies in 82.6% of individuals and the levels were significantly lower than levels seen following a single dose of AstraZeneca and those following natural infection.
The findings also suggest that the two Sputnik-V doses using heterologous adenoviruses may be of particular importance in certain populations.
Recently the first dose of Sputnik-V was marketed by the authorities as a single-dose COVID-19 vaccine, which was claimed to have an efficacy of 78.6–83.7% among elderly individuals in Russia. (Daily Mirror)