After Pfizer, Moderna's COVID Vaccine Shows Lowered Efficacy Against Omicron: Study

The new COVID variant, dubbed as Omicron by the World Health Organisation (WHO), has raised concern across the world and put a big question mark over the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines. After Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine showed lowered efficacy against Omicron, Moderna’s jab has now shown the same. As per the latest study, two doses of Moderna’s vaccine showed less efficacy against Omicron, while a booster dose showed promising results in neutralising the new ‘variant of concern’.

About The Study

This is the latest research into the efficacy of various COVID vaccines.

• The preliminary study was made public on Wednesday.
• The study hasn’t been peer-reviewed and has been published on medRxiv, which is a preprint server. 
• For this study, the blood samples of 30 individuals, who had received both doses of Moderna’s vaccine, were tested.
• Their blood samples were tested for antibodies against a pseudovirus, which had similar mutations as the Omicron variant. As the name might suggest, a pseudovirus isn’t the original virus but is made in the lab and mimics the characteristics of the original virus.
• The researchers also tested the blood samples of 17 additional people, who had received a booster dose of Moderna’s vaccine. A booster dose, as per the Johns Hopkins University, is an additional dose of a vaccine administered after the immunity generated by the original doses starts to wane. Many countries around the world, such as the United States, France, and Canada, are administering booster doses of COVID vaccines.

Findings Of The Study On Moderna’s COVID Vaccine’s Efficacy Against Omicron Variant

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Here is what the study found out:

• Firstly, the antibodies generated by Moderna’s COVID vaccine were found to be 50 times less effective against the Omicron variant. This was as compared to the original strain of the novel coronavirus, which was detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan in 2019, said David Montefiori, a virologist at Duke University in the United States, who helped in conducting the study.
• However, there is good news, as the booster dose was found to be able to neutralise the Omicron variant effectively. To this, Montefiori said that in case Omicron becomes the dominant strain, it might become more important to administer booster doses, NPR reported. This is especially the case for the elderly and those with underlying health issues, who are considered at a greater risk of contracting the virus. 

Earlier, similar research conducted at Africa Health Research Institute in South Africa showed similar results. 

• Omicron was able to evade the protection offered by Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID vaccine. A 41-fold drop in the levels of neutralising antibodies against the Omicron variant was witnessed.
• However, those who were previously infected and had received the two vaccine doses were able to fight against the infection. 

Omicron Variant: Is There A Need For A New COVID Vaccine?

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Both the studies have raised concerns over the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccines. So, is there a need for a new COVID vaccine specifically designed as per the new variant? To this, Montefiori said that a new vaccine wouldn’t be needed. This is because booster shots have shown promising results against the strain. Dr Anthony Fauci, who is the leading American virologist, has also vouched for the efficacy of the booster doses and said that as of now, “a variant-specific booster” is not needed, NPR reported.

About Omicron Variant

The novel coronavirus, which causes COVID-19, has undergone several mutations, resulting in several strains, some highly dangerous while others are comparatively less harmful. The Omicron variant probably falls into the first category.

• The variant was first detected in South Africa on November 9.
• The WHO was informed about it on November 24.
• The world health body classified it as a ‘variant of concern’ on November 26.
• One of the facts that raised global concerns was that Omicron had more mutations, including in the spike protein, as compared to any other variant.
• A study conducted at the University of Hong Kong has found that although the variant travels 70 times faster, it causes less severe infection than the Delta variant and the original strain.
• As of now, it has spread to over 75 countries.

Since there is still a lot unknown about Omicron, letting your guards down should be the last thing that you should do. Hence, do not forget to wear masks when in public, practise social distancing, and get vaccinated. These can help you protect yourself from the Omicron variant.

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