‘Modified vaccine effective against SA, Brazil variants’

Moderna Inc. said on Thursday that mid-stage trials showed its booster shots were effective against immune system-evading coronavirus variants that emerged in South Africa and Brazil. “We are encouraged by these new data, which reinforce our confidence that our booster strategy should be protective against these newly detected variants,” Stephane Bancel, Moderna’s chief executive officer, said in a statement. The pharma major also said studies of its Covid-19 vaccine in teenagers also showed that it was 96% effective.

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 mRNAits 1273.351, 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 emergency use authorisation to include teenagers.

China detects 18 cases of double mutant variant

China has confirmed at least 18 cases of the “double mutant” coronavirus variant circulating in India, including in three Chinese nationals who worked near New Delhi and returned home last month. The Chinese CDC has told state media that more Covid-19 cases imported from India were feared to be found, but they were unlikely to trigger cluster infections because proper measures were in place.

Philippines orders arrest of face mask violators

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the police to arrest anyone not wearing a mask properly, including those who wear it below the nose, as the country battles to contain a sharp rise in coronavirus infections.