By Pamela Cruz. Peninsula 360 Press [P360P].
Biotech company Moderna announced Monday that a booster of its COVID-19 vaccine increases levels of neutralizing antibodies to the Omicron variant approximately 37-fold with a 50-microgram dose, and up to 83-fold with the 100-microgram dose.
The news comes amidst a high growth in the spread of Omicron worldwide, a strain that has proven to be more contagious than Delta.
As the holiday season approaches, the number of gatherings and travel throughout the U.S. and abroad increases, and with it the risk of acquiring COVID-19, it is imperative that those eligible to receive a booster shot do so immediately.
The company noted that, according to preliminary data, the 50-microgram Moderna booster increased neutralizing antibody levels against Omicron approximately 37-fold compared to pre-booster levels, while a 100-microgram dose increased neutralizing antibody levels against Omicron approximately 83-fold.
"The dramatic increase in COVID-19 cases of the Omicron variant is of concern to everyone. However, these data showing that the Moderna COVID-19 booster can increase neutralizing antibody levels 37-fold over prebooster levels are reassuring," said Stéphane Bancel, CEO of Moderna.
In a statement, it said that to respond to this highly transmissible variant, Moderna will continue to make rapid progress in obtaining a specific booster candidate for Omicron in clinical trials, should it be needed in the future.
It also said it continues to make progress in obtaining booster doses to address emerging variants of concern, with the strategy of evaluating its initial vaccine prototype at the licensed booster dose - 50 micrograms - and a higher dose - 100 micrograms.
While both doses produced side effects comparable to those seen after the primary two-dose series, the 100-microgram dose showed slightly more frequent adverse reactions compared with the lower 50-microgram dose, he said.
He noted that given the long-term threat demonstrated by the Omicron immune escape, Moderna will also continue to develop a variant-specific vaccine, which is expected to advance into clinical trials in early 2022, and will evaluate the inclusion of that strain in its multivalent booster program.
It should be noted that the results are based on laboratory tests that do not capture the full range of the body's immune response against the virus, and while the vaccines may not prevent infection with the variant, they are expected to be effective in severe symptoms and hospitalization.
So far, the data has not been published or reviewed ??by independent experts, although Moderna said it is preparing a report with the data to be published online.
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