Factsheet on coronavirus vaccines
By William R. Jones
Finally, I received the New York manufactured Pfizer-BioNTech virus vaccine. Upon arriving early morning at our university Multi-Purpose Center, there was already a typical department store crowd lined up.
Nevertheless, through kindness and efficiency, I was in and out within forty-five minutes. This included a required fifteen-minute “in situ sit-down.” Monitoring was for possible side effects appearing other than the usual slight pain at the injection site; the deltoid muscle forming the rounded contour of the human shoulder.
As we entered the treatment area of the building we were given a “Revised: 6 April, 2021” handout telling us the risks and benefits of the Pfizer vaccine. Three striking facts printed were: 1) the vaccine MAY PREVENT you from getting the virus, 2) there is NO United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) APPROVED vaccine to prevent the virus and 3) globally there is no approved alternative vaccine available for the prevention of the virus.
In other words, it is an investigational drug, and its safety and efficacy have not been established. Further stated, it is our choice to accept or refuse the vaccine. Well, not really, if you have face-to-face contact with students within an educational system, it is understood that you would not challenge the administration concerning the issue.
Anyway, as I read on, this was the good news: The known and potential BENEFITS of the vaccine OUTWEIGH the known and potential RISKS of the product.
The U.S. FDA approved an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) of the vaccine in individuals 16 years of age and older. This emergency access mechanism justifies the use of drugs and biological products during the pandemic. An EUA is issued when there are no adequate, approved, available alternatives. And, the U.S. FDA decision is based on the totality of scientific evidence available. It is important to know that the vaccine is still being studied in clinical trials.
It is also enlightening to know that the Pfizer vaccine does not contain the weakened live virus, and thus, you cannot contract the virus in that manner. But, here's the advised caution: If you have had a severe allergic reaction to any ingredient of the vaccine, then, you should not get the shot.
All scientific language is not incommunicable. In simplified form, the Pfizer fact sheet tells us that the vaccine contains a new synthetic pharmaceutical formulation. It is a modified or slightly changed messenger ribonucleic acid (active ingredient) which is the blueprint that gives the cell the message to make the spike (S) protein of the virus (the antigen or foreign substance that causes antibodies to be made).
It is encapsulated or wrapped in a mixture of inactive ingredients of four different lipids with very long chemical names, except for cholesterol. The lipids and modRNA together form nanoparticles that carry the drug to cells. Also, in the mixture are buffers that keep the pH at a constant value, and there is a sugar: sucrose. The generic name or international nonproprietary name for the active ingredient is tozinameran. All the inactive ingredients, including sterile normal saline (0.9 percent NaCl), serve as a delivery vehicle.
We received a Vaccination Record Card as a reminder to return for a second 0.3 mL dose of the successful recipe twenty-one days later.
The author (
wrjones@vsu.edu) published novella “Beyond Harvard” and teaches ESL.