Expert says Moderna booster targeting omicron could be superior to current boosters
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As the covid-19 pandemic has changed with the emergence of new variants, Moderna is looking to update its vaccine offerings in response.
The drug manufacturer is studying an updated booster vaccine that targets the omicron variant, which they say could offer better protection as the variant spreads.
“The vaccine that’s in clinical trials includes two strains — the original Wuhan ancestral strain of the virus, plus an updated spike from the Omicron variant,” said Dr. Amesh Adalja, a Pittsburgh-based infectious disease expert and senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.
Current data suggests it could provide an eightfold increase in omicron protection compared to the existing booster shots, he said.
Adalja said regulators will need to see more data before the vaccine moves ahead in the approval process. Moderna will have to ask the FDA to review their findings and approve the new shots. Adalja said he anticipates that process will play out over the next several months, possibly making the boosters available in the fall.
“If it indeed is able to block transmission and decrease infections durably against omicron, I think it is something that will be recommended universally,” Adalja said.
The booster, he said, will likely be available only to adults.
While Adalja said he doesn’t feel existing booster doses are necessary in moderate- or low-risk individuals, an updated booster that targets the prominent omicron variant will likely be more important in fighting the ongoing pandemic.
“If you’re an average-risk person and completed another booster or your first booster, I think there’s no harm in getting it, but there’s only marginal value,” he said. “I think if and when a more variant-specific or updated vaccination or booster becomes available, that will be valuable.”
For high-risk individuals, however, Adalja said he doesn’t suggest waiting for an updated jab if they are eligible to receive one of the boosters currently available.
“Higher risk individuals should stay up to date with their vaccines,” he said.
Adalja, who considers himself low-risk, said he doesn’t currently plan to get a second booster — but he would consider the updated Moderna shot when it becomes available.
“An updated vaccination is something that helps us optimize our booster policy, because the current booster policy isn’t very effective,” he said, adding that the current system also sees some individuals who need boosters not receiving them, while those who don’t need them may have received two extra shots.
In addition to omicron-based boosters, studies are also examining vaccines that would protect against all variants, Adalja said.
“There are efforts to make universal coronavirus vaccines that would protect against all variants, and maybe even other coronaviruses,” he said.