This escape from immunity wasn’t complete. However, antibodies from people who’d been previously vaccinated with the two-dose Pfizer vaccine took a significant hit against Omicron, showing about a 40-fold decline in neutralizing ability. The other six had been infected with the original variant in the first wave of infections in South Africa.Īs expected, the samples showed very strong neutralization against the original SARS-CoV-2 variant. Six of the individuals had no history of COVID-19. Sigal and colleagues also tested the ability of antibodies in the plasma from 12 fully vaccinated individuals to neutralize Omicron. It means that the therapeutic tools already developed, including vaccines, should generally remain useful for combatting this new variant. In lab studies working with live Omicron virus, the researchers showed that this variant still relies on the ACE2 receptor to infect human lung cells. Last week brought the first wave of scientific data on Omicron, including interesting work from a research team led by Alex Sigal, Africa Health Research Institute, Durban, South Africa. Though Omicron was discovered in South Africa only last month, researchers have been working around the clock to learn more about this variant. Though these data are preliminary, they suggest that getting a booster will help protect people already vaccinated from breakthrough or possible severe infections with Omicron during the winter months. However, initial results of studies conducted both in the lab and in the real world show that people who get a booster shot, or third dose of vaccine, may be better protected. While our existing mRNA vaccines still offer some protection against Omicron, there appears to be a significant decline in neutralizing antibodies against this variant in people who have received two shots of an mRNA vaccine. So, what does the science show? The first data to emerge present somewhat encouraging results. All of these genetic changes raise the possibility that Omicron could cause breakthrough infections in people who’ve already received a Pfizer or Moderna mRNA vaccine. A major reason is Omicron has accumulated over 50 mutations, including about 30 in the spike protein, the part of the coronavirus that mRNA vaccines teach our immune systems to attack. There’s been great concern about the new Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. Francis Collins Credit: Adapted from Pfizer, Dec. Latest on Omicron Variant and COVID-19 Vaccine Protection
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