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  1. #1
    Invincible Jersey Ninja Tami's Avatar
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    Default All About Vaccines

    I found this article and decided to use it as a jumping-off point for talking about Vaccines

    How the Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Works


    A Piece of the Coronavirus

    The SARS-CoV-2 virus is studded with proteins that it uses to enter human cells. These so-called spike proteins make a tempting target for potential vaccines and treatments.



    The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is based on the virus’s genetic instructions for building the spike protein. But unlike the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines, which store the instructions in single-stranded RNA, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine uses double-stranded DNA.
    DNA Inside an Adenovirus

    The researchers added the gene for the coronavirus spike protein to another virus called Adenovirus 26. Adenoviruses are common viruses that typically cause colds or flu-like symptoms. The Johnson & Johnson team used a modified adenovirus that can enter cells but can’t replicate inside them or cause illness.


    Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine comes out of decades of research on adenovirus-based vaccines. In July, the first one was approved for general use — a vaccine for Ebola, also made by Johnson & Johnson. The company is also running trials on adenovirus-based vaccines for other diseases, including H.I.V. and Zika. Some other coronavirus vaccines are also based on adenoviruses, such as the one developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca using a chimpanzee adenovirus.

    Adenovirus-based vaccines for Covid-19 are more rugged than mRNA vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna. DNA is not as fragile as RNA, and the adenovirus’s tough protein coat helps protect the genetic material inside. As a result, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine can be refrigerated for up to three months at 36–46°F (2–8°C).
    Jumping ahead

    Making Antibodies

    Other immune cells, called B cells, may bump into the coronavirus spikes on the surface of vaccinated cells, or free-floating spike protein fragments. A few of the B cells may be able to lock onto the spike proteins. If these B cells are then activated by helper T cells, they will start to proliferate and pour out antibodies that target the spike protein.
    Stopping the Virus

    The antibodies can latch onto coronavirus spikes, mark the virus for destruction and prevent infection by blocking the spikes from attaching to other cells.
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  2. #2
    Invincible Jersey Ninja Tami's Avatar
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    I'll add more content later.
    Last edited by Tami; 03-05-2021 at 01:14 PM.
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  3. #3
    Swollen Member GOLGO 13's Avatar
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    Got my 2nd shot of Pfizer on 1/26 through my job (glorious state employee). Other than a little soreness after the 1st shot the next day, the whole operation took about 30 minutes? This is including having me sit for 10 minutes to make sure I had no side affects. 2nd shot was even easier with no arm soreness at all.

    About half my coworkers refused the vaccine, even though it was all arranged by the job at no cost to us other than a little of our free time. After discussing why they refused, I couldn't follow their logic/explanations. Honestly, I can't be bothered trying to pretend to care anymore. Whatevs. I got mine so I'm good.

  4. #4
    Invincible Jersey Ninja Tami's Avatar
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    Some more information on vaccinations

    I Got Vaccinated, Then I Got Covid. What Happened?


    Mary Duenwald, a Bloomberg Opinion editor, tested positive for Covid-19 even after receiving both doses of the Pfizer Inc.-BioNTech SE vaccine. Here, she discusses her experience with Sam Fazeli, a pharmaceutical industry analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence. The conversation has been edited and condensed.
    MD: I was vaccinated for Covid recently — I got my second Pfizer shot a few weeks ago. I was hoping that meant I wouldn’t get Covid, yet I tested positive this week. How is that possible?
    SF: Thank you, Mary, for sharing your story. The reality is that so-called sterilizing immunity, or protection that completely blocks a virus from infecting you, is rare. In fact, only one vaccine has been proven to provide that, and that is the smallpox shot. If you think back to the phase III trials of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna Inc. vaccines — arguably the ones with the best efficacy so far — they were 95% effective, meaning some vaccinated people still developed symptoms after the second dose, even if at a very low rate. Also, outside the environment of a clinical trial, efficacy will be slightly lower; real-world data is showing about 90% efficacy. It’s also possible that you are infected with a new variant, such as the one that is circulating in New York, known as B.1.526. These variants are potentially better at getting past your antibody immunity.
    MD: My symptoms are mild, as if this were just a cold. Can I assume the shot is still protecting me?
    SF: Of course. You will never know how bad your symptoms would have been if you had not been vaccinated, but they could have been much worse. The vaccines have high efficacy against severe and critical disease — indeed their main purpose is to keep people out of the hospital and lower their risk of dying. Even the ones with apparently lower efficacy against mild and moderate disease, such as Johnson & Johnson’s shot, show better efficacy against severe and critical illness.
    MD: Does being vaccinated mean I am less likely to transmit the virus to someone else?
    SF: Some data suggest that is the case, but it is early days. The antibodies generated by vaccination can stop a virus from actually infecting you or from allowing the infection to “take.” Specifically, people who are vaccinated and then test positive have lower amounts of virus in their nasal passages and possibly even less in their lungs than if they were not inoculated. This means there is less virus in the air you breathe out. How long this lasts is not known, though. The data we have come from people soon after their vaccinations, when they have high levels of antibodies. As the months pass, these levels may fall to a level that they can’t stop an infection in the absence of a vaccine booster or a natural infection like yours. We need to see the data on asymptomatic infections at six months and 12 months after the second dose of the vaccine to have a better idea.
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  5. #5
    Invincible Jersey Ninja Tami's Avatar
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    CDC says vaccinated grandparents can hug their grandkids again in new guidelines [note: CBR messed with the link. Here it is, with spaces. https://www. business insider .com/cdc-guidance-what-can-covid-19-vaccinated-people-do-2021-3]

    After several days of delays last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued its first guidance on what kinds of privileged activities people who've been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 can safely do.

    The guidelines, issued Monday, allow for unmasked indoor dinner parties among fully vaccinated crews, and they also endorse more hugs and less distance between vaccinated and unvaccinated extended family members — with some caveats.

    "The recommendations issued today are just a first step," CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said at a White House COVID-19 press briefing Monday morning, announcing the new guidance. "Fully vaccinated people can visit with other fully vaccinated people indoors without wearing a mask or physical distancing."
    But, Walensky added, it's important for vaccinated people to "please keep wearing a well-fitting mask" in most other settings.
    --->

    Interim Public Health Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated People


    Fully vaccinated people can:

    • Visit with other fully vaccinated people indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing
    • Visit with unvaccinated people from a single household who are at low risk for severe COVID-19 disease indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing
    • Refrain from quarantine and testing following a known exposure if asymptomatic



    For now, fully vaccinated people should continue to:
    • Take precautions in public like wearing a well-fitted mask and physical distancing
    • Wear masks, practice physical distancing, and adhere to other prevention measures when visiting with unvaccinated people who are at increased risk for severe COVID-19 disease or who have an unvaccinated household member who is at increased risk for severe COVID-19 disease
    • Wear masks, maintain physical distance, and practice other prevention measures when visiting with unvaccinated people from multiple households
    • Avoid medium- and large-sized in-person gatherings
    • Get tested if experiencing COVID-19 symptoms
    • Follow guidance issued by individual employers
    • Follow CDC and health department travel requirements and recommendations

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  6. #6
    Invincible Jersey Ninja Tami's Avatar
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    Still waiting for my turn to get the vaccine.
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  7. #7
    Old school comic book fan WestPhillyPunisher's Avatar
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    As things stand at present, it could be June or July before my turn comes to get a shot. However, I don't give a damn which vaccine I get.
    Avatar: Here's to the late, great Steve Dillon. Best. Punisher. Artist. EVER!

  8. #8
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    I'm old, and I got my second does of the Pfizer vaccine on Saturday. Both doses made it a bit painful to move my arm for the rest of the day. The second dose left me with some muscle aches after a few hours, and I slept fitfully on Saturday night and woke up with sore muscles on Sunday. However, an hour after taking a Tylenol on Sunday morning all symptoms were gone, and that was that. Now, I'm vaccinated and ready to go out and do some of the necessary tasks that I've been postponing for the last year. Yay, me!

  9. #9
    New old guy Surf's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by WestPhillyPunisher View Post
    As things stand at present, it could be June or July before my turn comes to get a shot. However, I don't give a damn which vaccine I get.
    How is that WPP? I've got an idea how old you are and your group should be currently or next to get it. Nah man, June and July they'll be vaccinating teenagers by then.
    Beefing up the old home security, huh?
    You bet yer ass.

  10. #10
    X-Men fan since '92 Odd Rödney's Avatar
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    I want to get it but the wait list is insane where I live. Just gotta wait, don't have much choice in the matter.
    "Kids don't care **** about superhero comic books. And if they do, they probably start with manga, with One Punch-Man or My Hero Academia. " -ImOctavius.

  11. #11
    Invincible Jersey Ninja Tami's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Surf View Post
    How is that WPP? I've got an idea how old you are and your group should be currently or next to get it. Nah man, June and July they'll be vaccinating teenagers by then.
    I know in NJ the cut-off age is either 64 or 65, so WPP is a few years too young if PA is following the same guidelines.
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  12. #12
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    In Canada, they changed the policy on the double dose vaccines, in order for more people to get the first shot. So people will have to wait up to four months for the second dose. I'll be lucky if I get the first dose before my birthday in July.

    Since I live in a large metropolis, I think one of the double dose vaccines is more likely, since they need low low temperatures which can be managed in large cities. I expect, when the Johnson & Johnson vaccine finally arrives it will be shipped to remote areas--especially up north--because it can be kept and refrigerated in those areas, that don't have the tech for the other vaccines.

  13. #13
    New old guy Surf's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Tami View Post
    I know in NJ the cut-off age is either 64 or 65, so WPP is a few years too young if PA is following the same guidelines.
    Yea, I get that. Here in Indianapolis we're into the 55 or so group, I'm sayin, no way in a major area like many comporable cities in Pennsylvania should have to wait until June for vaccinations for that group.
    Beefing up the old home security, huh?
    You bet yer ass.

  14. #14
    Extraordinary Member CaptainEurope's Avatar
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    Germany and at least a half dozen other countries stopped using AstraZeneca vaccines this week, as there seems to be a connection to a rare and sometimes fatal kind of thrombosis in the brain.

    This is pretty much the worst that could have happened. The anti-vaxxers are feeling vindicated, and my estimate of when I will be vaccinated moved from April to June or July. We're expecting an announcement from the EU today on whether vaccinating with AstraZeneca should continue or not.

  15. #15
    Old school comic book fan WestPhillyPunisher's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Surf View Post
    Yea, I get that. Here in Indianapolis we're into the 55 or so group, I'm sayin, no way in a major area like many comporable cities in Pennsylvania should have to wait until June for vaccinations for that group.
    Tami's right, I'm only 62 and in good health (save for a balky shoulder), so, older people and those with underlying health problems are ahead of me in line here in Pennsylvania. And with the rollout of vaccinations here in Philly happening in fits and starts in the beginning, I figured it'd be a while before my turn comes.
    Avatar: Here's to the late, great Steve Dillon. Best. Punisher. Artist. EVER!

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