화이자 이어 모더나 "코로나백신 효과 94.5%…게임체인저 될 것"<br /><br />More good news in the battle against COVID-19.<br />Moderna, an American biotech firm, has revealed that its vaccine candidate is 94-and-a-half percent effective against the virus.<br />Following Pfizer's announcement a matter of days ago, this is the second such vaccine in the U.S. to have a strikingly high success rate.<br />Lee Seung-jae reports.<br />U.S. biotech firm Moderna on Monday reported that its experimental vaccine is 94-point-5 percent effective in preventing COVID-19,... based on its interim data from a late-stage clinical trial.<br />The report came just a week after Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech reported their experimental vaccine is over 90-percent effective.<br />Among 30-thousand study participants in Moderna's trial,... half were given a placebo,... a shot of saline that has no effect,... while the rest were given the vaccine.<br />Over a period of several months,... among those who received the placebo,... 90 of them contracted COVID-19,... while only five came down with the virus among the vaccine recipients.<br />However,... none of those five became severely ill.<br />Moderna added the vaccine did not show any serious side effects.<br />It said only a small percentage of those who received the vaccine experienced mild side effects, such as body aches and headaches.<br />Moderna also revealed a key advantage over Pfizer's vaccine,... as it does not require ultra-cold storage,... making it much easier to distribute.<br />Moderna says the vaccine only requires standard refrigerator temperature of 2 to 8 degrees Celsius for 30 days,... and can be stored for up to 6 months at minus 20 degrees Celsius.<br />Pfizer's vaccine must be shipped and stored at minus 70 degrees Celsius.<br />In response,... the European Commission said Monday that the bloc was working to sign more supply deals with the vaccine makers.<br />The EU has been in talks with Moderna since July,... which included talks of a contract for a supply of 80 million doses,... with an option to buy another 80 million.<br />Last week,... the commission also reached a deal with Pfizer and BioNTech for a supply of their vaccine,... with the formal signing expected this week.<br />Lee Seung-jae, Arirang News.<br />
