Japan Suspects Contaminant In Moderna Vaccines Is Metallic, 'Reacts To Magnets'

The Japanese Ministry of Health announced on Thursday that around 1.6 million doses of Moderna's Covid-19 vaccine have been taken out of use due to contamination in some vials that 'reacts to magnets,' according to a ministry official.

Several vaccination centers reported finding foreign matter in the doses.

"It's a substance that reacts to magnets," the official told Nikkei, adding "It could be metal."

Moderna, meanwhile, has confirmed receiving "several complaints of particulate matter" in vials distributed in Japan, but that "not safety or efficacy issues" were found related to the reports.

"The company is investigating the reports and remains committed to working transparently and expeditiously with its partner, Takeda, and regulators to address any potential concerns," a spokesperson told Nikkei, adding that a "manufacturing issue" at a plant in Spain was to blame.

After the complaints, the vaccine lot in question as well as two adjacent lots have been taken out of circulation "out of an abundance of caution," according to the spokesperson.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga told reporters on Thursday afternoon that he had instructed the ministry to look into the case with safety as the top priority, adding he had received reports that the withdrawal "won't have a significant impact on the country's vaccination campaign." -Nikkei

The foreign matter that 'reacts to magnets' is sure to revive speculation over the viral 'Covid-19 vaccine magnet challenge,' in which dozens of people recorded magnets sticking to their vaccine injection sites.

And while several 'fact-checking' websites have taken a crack at what's going on, the two most common explanations are 'they're faking it' or 'their skin was slightly wet.'

Some believe the reported magnetism can be explained by graphene oxide, a magnetic nanoparticle studied for its use as a drug delivery platform and other biomedical applications.

Critics note with the fact that that graphene oxide is not listed as an ingredient in any available Covid-19 vaccine, while skeptics counter with 'so what?' If random batches are tainted with foreign substances, on accident or on purpose, of course they wouldn't be listed in the ingredients.

In any event, Moderna stock isn't too happy today. (read more)

TOKYO, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Two people died after receiving Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) COVID-19 vaccine shots that were among lots later suspended following the discovery of contaminants, Japan's health ministry said on Saturday.

The men in their 30s died this month within days of receiving their second Moderna doses, the ministry said in a release. Each had a shot from one of three manufacturing lots suspended on Thursday. The causes of death are being investigated.

Japan halted the use of 1.63 million Moderna doses shipped to 863 vaccination centres nationwide, more than a week after the domestic distributor, Takeda Pharmaceutical Co (4502.T), received reports of contaminants in some vials. read more

"At this time, we do not have any evidence that these deaths are caused by the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine," Moderna and Takeda said in a statement on Saturday. "It is important to conduct a formal investigation to determine whether there is any connection."

The government has also said no safety or efficacy issues had been identified and the suspension of the three Moderna batches was a precaution.

Fumie Sakamoto, the infection control manager at St. Luke's International Hospital in Tokyo, cautioned against drawing a connection between the shots and the fatalities reported on Saturday.

"There may only be a temporal relationship between vaccination and death," Sakamoto told Reuters. "There are so many things we still don't know to make any conclusions on these two cases."

The contaminants found in some vials in Japan are believed to be metallic particles, public broadcaster NHK reported, citing health ministry sources.

Japan has administered more than 124 million COVID-19 vaccine shots, with about 44% of the population fully inoculated.

As of Aug. 8, 991 people had died in Japan after receiving shots of Pfizer Inc's vaccine and 11 after receiving Moderna's, but no causality between the injections and the deaths has been established, according to the health ministry. Adverse reactions have been reported at a frequency of 0.01% for the Moderna shot.

In the fatalities reported on Saturday, each man had a fever the day after his second dose and died two days after getting the fever. There has been no evidence that their shots contained contaminants, a health ministry official told reporters.