Three doses of the Biontech vaccine apparently help against the new Corona variant Omikron. The manufacturers are still working on a specifically tailored vaccine.
New York / Mainz – The corona vaccine manufacturer Biontech * / Pfizer have published the first data on the effectiveness of their vaccine against Omikron. They announced that they expect to be able to provide a version adapted to the new Corona variant by the end of March 2022 – if an adaptation is necessary.
The official release this Wednesday said that preliminary data from its own study suggest that a booster vaccination * increases the amount of antibodies by 25 times. “The preliminary data indicate that a third dose elicits a similar level of neutralizing antibodies to Omikron as seen after two doses against the wild-type and other variants that occurred before Omikron,” the statement said.
A double vaccination, on the other hand, could offer “insufficient protection” against infection with the new pathogen. Nevertheless: It probably still protects against a severe Covid-19 * course.
Laboratory Research on Omikron: Statements from Biontech and Pfizer
“Ensuring that as many people as possible are fully vaccinated with the two-dose series and the booster dose remains the best strategy to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” Pfizer chief executive Albert Bourla said, according to AFP. Biontech Ceo Ugur Sahin called for “large-scale vaccination and refreshment campaigns all over the world” in order to “get through the winter” protected.
The Omikron variant has already been detected in dozens of countries, including Germany. It has 50 mutations compared to the original virus, 32 of them in the so-called spike protein, with which the coronavirus docks on the host cell. (frs) * Merkur.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA
