Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine shows promise against newly detected variants, company saysModerna’s COVID-19 vaccine should remain protective against recently detected viral variants, including the Delta variant first identified in India, the company announced Tuesday.
Lab studies using blood samples from eight trial participants who received both doses indicated "minimal impact" on neutralizing power against the Alpha variant first detected in the U.K. and a "modest reduction" by 2.1-fold against the Delta variant, which has been detected in over 85 countries. Modest reductions were also seen for the Gamma, Kappa and Eta variants at 3.2-fold, 3.3-3.4-fold and 4.2-fold versus the ancestral strain, respectively. Versions of the Beta variant, first detected in South Africa, dealt up to an 8.4-fold reduction, and a variant first found in Angola, A.VOI.V2, lent an 8.0-fold reduction in neutralizing antibody levels, though this strain hasn’t been identified as a variant of interest or concern.
Findings were submitted as a preprint to the bioRxiv server.
"As we seek to defeat the pandemic, it is imperative that we are proactive as the virus evolves. We remain committed to studying emerging variants, generating data and sharing it as it becomes available. These new data are encouraging and reinforce our belief that the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine should remain protective against newly detected variants," said Stéphane Bancel, CEO of Moderna, in a statement posted Tuesday. "These findings highlight the importance of continuing to vaccinate populations with an effective primary series vaccine."......................
https://www.foxnews.com/health/moderna-covid-19-vaccine-shows-promise-against-newly-detected-variants
