Moderna’s Omicron-specific Covid-19 vaccine shows positive results
- The US biotech firm sees the shot, which targets both the original coronavirus strain and the subvariant, as its ‘lead candidate’ for a booster this fall
- In a trial of 814 adults, the ‘bivalent’ vaccine produce 1.75 times more Omicron-specific neutralising antibodies than the original Spikevax jab
US biotech company Moderna on Wednesday announced positive results for a new vaccine that targets both the original Covid-19 strain and Omicron, and sees the shot as its “lead candidate” for a booster this fall.
The so-called “bivalent” vaccine was tested in a trial of 814 adults and shown to produce 1.75 times more Omicron-specific neutralising antibodies, which have the power to prevent infection, compared to Moderna’s original Spikevax vaccine.
All of the participants previously received three doses of Spikevax, and then slightly more than half went on to get a fourth dose of the bivalent shot while the rest got another dose of Spikevax. Antibody levels were tested one month later.
The group that got the new shot also received slightly superior protection to the ancestral strain of Covid-19 compared to Spikevax – though original Covid-19 has long since disappeared from circulation.
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“We are thrilled,” said Stephane Bancel, CEO of Moderna, in a statement, adding he anticipated this vaccine would be the company’s lead candidate for authorisation as a booster this fall.