COVID-19: Pfizer and BioNTech begin clinical trial of Omicron-based vaccine
Categories: Covid 19
Pfizer and BioNTech announced on Tuesday that they have begun a study comparing their Omicron-based Covid-19 vaccine against the original vaccine.Initial data from the research, which will enrol 1,420 volunteers, is expected in the first half of 2022, according to Pfizer. It is unclear, however, what information authorities, such as the Food and Drug Administration, would require before approving an Omicron-specific vaccination, or what criteria the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will use to prescribe one. "We recognise the need to be prepared in the event this protection wanes over time and to potentially help address Omicron and new variants in the future," she said.According to Ugur Sahin, CEO of the German biotech business BioNTech, the original vaccine's protection against mild and moderate COVID appeared to fade more quickly against Omicron. A total of 1,420 people between the ages of 18 and 55 will participate in the study.The first group of patients will receive one or two doses of the Omicron vaccination after receiving two doses of the current Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine 90-180 days prior to enrollment. In December 2020, the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccination became the first COVID injection to be approved in the West.