Elderly show equally strong antibody response to first dose of Astra, Pfizer COVID-19 shots

FILE PHOTO: A dose of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is prepared in a vaccination centre at Newmarket Racecourse, amid the coronavirus disease outbreak in Newmarket, Britain March 26, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Couldridge

LONDON (Reuters) – The first study to directly compare immune reactions between Pfizer’s and AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccines has found similarly strong antibody responses in over 80-year-olds after a first dose of either shot, UK scientists said on Wednesday.

The study also found, however, that a critical component of the immune system known as T cells showed a more enhanced response in those who got the AstraZeneca vaccine than in those who got the Pfizer one – a finding scientists behind the study called worthy of more investigation.

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