Moderna’s booster shots effective against variants

Booster shots that were studied spurred antibodies against the strains that hit Brazil and South Africa

NEW YORK/BEIJING: Moderna’s Covid-19 booster shots gave positive results against immune system-evading strains that emerged in South Africa and Brazil, according to early results from a mid-stage trial.

Two types of booster shots studied spurred higher levels of virus-halting antibodies against the strain P.1 that hit Brazil and B.1.351, common in South Africa, Moderna said. One of the boosters is an additional low-dose shot of its existing vaccine, while the other type is customised against the South Africa strain.

Scientists and drugmakers are moving rapidly to head off the rise of coronavirus variants with new mutations that may help them elude existing vaccines from Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech, and Johnson & Johnson.

In Moderna’s trial, the customised booster, called mRNA1273.351, produced the highest levels of antibodies against the strain common in South Africa.

“We are encouraged by these new data, which reinforces our confidence that our booster strategy should be protective against these newly detected variants,” said Stephane Bancel, Moderna’s CEO.

Meanwhile, Moderna said that initial results from its trial of its Covid vaccine in adolescents aged 12-17 years showed that it was 96% effective, with no serious safety problems identified so far.

The company is continuing to collect data and is in discussions with regulators about amending its emergency use authorisation to include teenagers.

{ JAIR BOLSONARO } BRAZIL PRESIDENT

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