COVID-19: The J&J Vaccine Approved in the UK

In the UK, few vaccines have been used for combating COVID-19. The Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine  is the fourth and most recent one approved for use at the moment.

How it works:

The Johnson and Johnson (J&J) vaccine uses the “viral vector” technology peculiar to the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine, which exploits a virus to act as a Trojan horse that introduces part of the genetic blueprint of coronavirus into a cell in the body.

The machinery of the cell will breed a harmless portion of the virus that causes COVID-19. This portion is known as spike protein.

The immune system of the body recognizes that it is not part of it and therefore begins to produce antibodies and trigger other immune cells to combat what it thinks is an infection.

The vaccine, developed by the pharmaceutical arm of the Janssen Company, has been revealed to be 67% overall effective in preventing moderate to severe COVID-19, with some studies signifying that it also offers complete protection against hospital admission and death.

The J&J Vaccine Usage:

For the storage and distribution to be much easier, it should be stored at fridge temperatures. The best part of this vaccine is that it needs only a dose, contrary to the others that need two doses and weeks apart. The UK government will be ordering 20 million doses of the vaccine, and the first deliveries are expected to arrive later this year.