Vaccine Wars: The Empire Strikes Back?

Things are getting nasty in the Vaccine Wars (I suppose this is predictable when prestige and finance are both involved). First, there were suggestions that Russia's Sputnik vaccine hadn't been properly tested and its subjects coerced into participation. Now, we have attacks on the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine. (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/nov/26/scrutiny-grows-over-oxford-universityastrazeneca-vaccine). This vaccine is cheaper than its current rivals and doesn't need special refrigeration before use. It could consequently be seen as a danger to their sales. The basic gripe surrounds the observation that a 'small trial' (with less than 3000 UK subjects) involved the 'accidental' giving of a half dose, followed later by a full dose of the vaccine. This resulted in more than 90% protection (comparable to the Pfizer vaccine). The much bigger 'major trial', with subjects in more diverse range of countries, resulted in circa 62% protection (which is quite adequate as anything better than 50% is regarded as viable). There is no easy scientific explanation for these differences in protection. I suspect that the 'small trial' was entirely accidental (the experimenters realised they had got the first dose wrong but decided to analyse the results anyway). Getting the dose wrong, is certainly not a good 'look'in any medical trial. There is also the problem that the 'small trial' (which is going to be repeated in a new global trial) had no subjects over the age of 55. The main study suggested that the vaccine works on all age groups (including mature folk like myself) but that can't be assumed from the 'small trial'. I do think that the Oxford/AstraZeneca team were ill-advised to make so much of the half dose-followed by a full dose finding. It would have been better to regard it as a pilot study. I think, however, that claims the team 'embellished' their results are over the top. And I really don't know what to make of an Investor analyst's claim that "we believe that this product (the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine) will never be licensed in the US". It was, however, sufficient to cause a fall in AstraZeneca's share price.