A doctor inoculates a nurse against Covid-19 with the Moderna vaccine at Essen university hospital in Germany. Getty Images
A doctor inoculates a nurse against Covid-19 with the Moderna vaccine at Essen university hospital in Germany. Getty Images
A doctor inoculates a nurse against Covid-19 with the Moderna vaccine at Essen university hospital in Germany. Getty Images
A doctor inoculates a nurse against Covid-19 with the Moderna vaccine at Essen university hospital in Germany. Getty Images

Germany recommends vaccine mix for better protection


Soraya Ebrahimi
  • English
  • Arabic

Germany on Thursday recommended that everyone who received an AstraZeneca first dose switch to BioNTech-Pfizer or Moderna shots for better protection against the coronavirus, including against the Delta variant.

Studies show that the immune response is "clearly superior" when an AstraZeneca shot is combined with a second mRNA vaccine, compared with two AstraZeneca jabs, the Standing Committee on Vaccination at the Robert Koch Institute, or STIKO, said.

STIKO recommended the mix "regardless of age" and with a minimum gap of four weeks between the two jabs.

The vaccines developed by BioNTech-Pfizer and Moderna are based on the same novel messenger RNA technology, which trains the body to reproduce spike proteins, similar to those found on the coronavirus.

When exposed to the real virus later, the body recognises the spike proteins and is able to fight them off.

Viral vector vaccines such as AstraZeneca's and Johnson & Johnson's use a harmless virus to deliver a piece of genetic code to human cells, allowing them to make a pathogen’s protein. This trains the immune system to react to future infections.

Chancellor Angela Merkel received a Moderna second shot after first receiving an AstraZeneca shot.

Pointing to studies in Britain, STIKO said protection against the Delta variant is "significantly reduced" after only one shot.

"In this context, STIKO points out that it is important to get the second vaccine dose," it said.

Germany expects the Delta variant to take over as the dominant strain of the coronavirus in the country in the coming days.

"I expect that in the course of July we will see Delta accounting for over 70 to 80 per cent of infections in our country," Health Minister Jens Spahn told reporters.

The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) said on Wednesday that the Delta variant first identified in India already accounted for 37 per cent of infections in Germany in the week to June 20.

If the Delta variant becomes dominant in Germany, so-called coronavirus variant countries such as Britain and Portugal - from which most travel is currently banned - could be reclassified, Mr Spahn said.

Given the increasing spread of Delta and research showing that full vaccination protects well against it, "we will look at the situation in the next few days", Mr Spahn said.

"If both of these things are confirmed, we will then be able to treat Portugal and the United Kingdom as high-incidence areas", rather than "variant countries", he said.

Only citizens and residents of Germany are permitted to enter from a variant country and are subject to a two-week quarantine, regardless of whether they are fully vaccinated or can provide a negative Covid-19 test.

By contrast, anyone can enter from a high-incidence country and can end their quarantine after five days with a negative test.

Germany's current variant countries list includes Britain, Portugal, India and Russia.

Despite the rising share of the Delta variant, the overall incidence in Germany has steadily declined in recent weeks.

The RKI on Thursday reported 892 new cases in the past 24 hours and an incidence rate of 5.1 new infections per 100,000 people over the last seven days.

But across Europe, the number of new cases rose again last week after 10 weeks of decline, according to the World Health Organisation.

Speaking in the European Parliament, European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde has warned of the threat posed by virus variants to the economy.

"The nascent recovery still faces uncertainty, also due to the spread of virus mutations", she said.

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Rating: 3/5

What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion

Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

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if you go

Getting there

Etihad (Etihad.com), Emirates (emirates.com) and Air France (www.airfrance.com) fly to Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport, from Abu Dhabi and Dubai respectively. Return flights cost from around Dh3,785. It takes about 40 minutes to get from Paris to Compiègne by train, with return tickets costing €19. The Glade of the Armistice is 6.6km east of the railway station.

Staying there

On a handsome, tree-lined street near the Chateau’s park, La Parenthèse du Rond Royal (laparenthesedurondroyal.com) offers spacious b&b accommodation with thoughtful design touches. Lots of natural woods, old fashioned travelling trunks as decoration and multi-nozzle showers are part of the look, while there are free bikes for those who want to cycle to the glade. Prices start at €120 a night.

More information: musee-armistice-14-18.fr ; compiegne-tourisme.fr; uk.france.fr

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Dinesh Chandimal, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kaushal Silva, Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Lahiru Thirimanne, Niroshan Dickwella, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Rangana Herath, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep, Lakshan Sandakan, Vishwa Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Jeffrey Vandersay, Milinda Siriwardana, Roshen Silva, Akila Dananjaya, Charith Asalanka, Shaminda Eranga and Dhammika Prasad.

If you go

Flights

Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh with a stop in Yangon from Dh3,075, and Etihad flies from Abu Dhabi to Phnom Penh with its partner Bangkok Airlines from Dh2,763. These trips take about nine hours each and both include taxes. From there, a road transfer takes at least four hours; airlines including KC Airlines (www.kcairlines.com) offer quick connecting flights from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville from about $100 (Dh367) return including taxes. Air Asia, Malindo Air and Malaysian Airlines fly direct from Kuala Lumpur to Sihanoukville from $54 each way. Next year, direct flights are due to launch between Bangkok and Sihanoukville, which will cut the journey time by a third.

The stay

Rooms at Alila Villas Koh Russey (www.alilahotels.com/ kohrussey) cost from $385 per night including taxes.

Updated: July 01, 2021, 6:32 PM`