Study conducted by AIG Hospitals with Asian Healthcare Foundation researchers showed mixing Covishield and Covaxin doses is four times more effective.
Since long, questions have risen as to what happens when we mix two different COVID-19 vaccines and how safe or useful are they to inoculate a person? A Hyderabad-based hospital has conducted a pilot study in this area and we may soon get a concrete answer to our queries.
The study conducted by AIG Hospitals along with researchers from the Asian Healthcare Foundation showed that mixing two COVID-19 vaccines, primarily Covishield and Covaxin as the two doses is four times more effective than giving two doses of the same vaccine.
"The study was conducted to determine the safety profile of mixing Covishield and Covaxin along with checking the antibody response," a press release from AIG said on Monday. It further stated that the study showed mixing Covishield and Covaxin is absolutely safe and there are no adverse effects on any of the participants.
According to D Nageshwar Reddy, Chairman of AIG Hospitals, said that the most significant finding of this study was that in comparison to same vaccine groups, the spike-protein neutralising antibodies found in the mixed vaccine groups were significantly higher.
As Centre has approved 'Prevention vaccine' doses for the healthcare workers, elderly and the vulnerable population, it is important to find out the cross-immunity generated by mixing of the available vaccines.
About the study
A total of 330 healthy volunteers were selected and screened for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies for the study.
These 330 volunteers were not vaccinated previously and had no history of the COVID-19 infection.
13% or 44 participants were found to be seronegative means they did not have COVID-related antibodies.
87% participants who were unvaccinated and never tested positive for the virus had COVID-related antibodies.
This means our population may have developed significant antibodies because of the second wave due to Delta.
Study model
44 participants were divided into two four groups.
Group 1 - First Dose of Covishield + Second Dose of Covishield
Group 2 - First Dose of Covaxin + Second Dose of Covaxin
Group 1 and 2 were the homologous vaccine groups in which same vaccine have been given and relevant antibody titers were checked.
Group 3 - First Dose of Covishield + Second Dose of Covaxin
Group 4 - First Dose of Covaxin + Second Dose of Covishield
Group 3 and 4 were the heterogeneous vaccine groups in which different vaccines were given and antibody titers were checked. All these 44 participants were followed for 60 days to see if there are any adverse effects.
Findings of the study
The study conclusively found that mixing vaccines are absolutely safe as none of the participants developed any adverse effect.
Spike-protein neutralising antibodies found in the mixed vaccine groups were significantly higher than the same-vaccine groups.
Spike-protein neutralising antibodies are the ones which kill the COVID-19 virus and reduce the overall infectivity.
The spike-protein antibody response was four times higher compared to two-dose of the same vaccine, the study revealed.
Omicron variant is considered to have more than 30 mutations in the spike protein, which enables it to evade vaccines and spread faster.
The finding is particularly important when considering giving booster dose to elicit a robust antibody response and help kill the virus.
The study results show that mixing of Covishield and Covaxin provide a higher antibody response and is safe as well.
The data from the study has been shared with the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) to be considered as a reference study.
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