Sinopharm’s vaccine is effective against the highly contagious coronavirus Delta variant, a new study has found.
More than 95 per cent of the 282 people studied developed antibodies within two weeks of the second shot, said researchers at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka.
They said 81 per cent developed specific antibodies capable of neutralising the virus at levels similar to those seen after infection from Sars-CoV-2.
“Antibody responses to Delta variant and neutralising antibodies were similar to levels seen following natural infection,” they said.
However, antibody responses were lower in people over the age of 60, compared with those in the 20 to 39 age group, researchers said.
“Seroconversion rates and immunogenicity appear to be lower in older individuals,” the researchers wrote in a paper that is yet to be peer reviewed.
The researchers also compared immune responses to variants of the virus.
While the vaccine held up particularly well against Delta, the response was slightly lower compared with the original strain, according to researchers.