HAVANA (AP) – The announcement this week that the Cuban vaccine Abdala is 92.28% effective and that Soberana 02 exceeds global requirements to protect against the coronavirus sparked international interest, officials from medical institutions said Thursday.
The expectation was generated from the fact that the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology reported the percentage of protection for Abdala and the Finlay Institute stated that Soberana 02 would have a minimum of 62%, explained Eulogio Pimentel, vice president of BioCubaFarma, the state company that markets medicines on the island.
There was a “hive of exchange, of emails from many counterparts,” said Pimentel at a press conference. He did not detail the countries that made requests, but in recent days Argentina, Iran and Vietnam said they were aware of the development of the antigens.
He added that Venezuela received the same Thursday a donation of 30,000 doses of Abdala and that this would be an advance of a commercial agreement with Caracas.
For his part, the director of the Finlay Institute, Vicente Verez reiterated that the first two doses of Soberana 02 achieved an efficacy of 62%, but estimated that when the data from the third, Soberana Plus, are added, the percentage could rise to between 85 % and 95%. It will be known exactly in the coming days, he added.
Both immunizers were designed in three-dose schedules. They are expected to obtain emergency clearance and be certified by the World Health Organization.
Cuba is the only Latin American nation that has antigens produced and developed by its own industry, an achievement for the island that has defended its scientific pole for three decades even in the midst of economic crises.
At the same time, the director of BioCubaFarma, Eduardo Martínez, assured that Cuban vaccines have competitive advantages in relation to their world peers, for example, they can be kept in refrigerators from 1 to 8 degrees.
Last month the massive vaccination campaign began and it is expected that in August 70% of the population will be immunized.
The island accumulates 174,789 infected and 1,209 people.
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