Pfizer said that tweaking its vaccine to better target the omicron variant is safe and works — just days before regulators debate whether to offer Americans updated booster shots this fall.
A syringe is prepared with the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination clinic in Chester, Pa., on Dec. 15, 2021. Pfizer says tweaking its COVID-19 vaccine to better target the omicron variant is safe and boosts protection.
The vaccines currently used in the U.S. still offer strong protection against severe COVID-19 disease and death — especially if people have gotten a booster dose. But those vaccines target the original coronavirus strain and their effectiveness against any infection dropped markedly when the super-contagious omicron mutant emerged.
Pfizer and its partner BioNTech studied two different ways of updating their shots — targeting just omicron, or a combination booster that adds omicron protection to the original vaccine. They also tested whether to keep today's standard dosage — 30 micrograms — or to double the shots' strength. "Based on these data, we believe we have two very strong omicron-adapted candidates," Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said in a statement.But many experts say combination shots may be the best approach because they would retain the proven benefits of the original COVID-19 vaccine while adding new protection against omicron. And Pfizer said a month after people received its combo shot, they had a 9 to 11-fold increase in omicron-fighting antibodies. That's more than 1.
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