The omicron variants dominate the infection process in many countries. Britain is now approving a vaccine that works against the original strain at the same time. It is also already being examined by the EU medicines authority.
The UK Medicines Agency has given the green light to Moderna's Corona vaccine adapted to the omicron variant. The vaccine from the US biotechnology company has been approved for the booster vaccination of adults, said the authority MHRA. A clinical study has shown that the vaccine triggers a "strong immune response" against both the original virus strain and the omicron variant, explained MHRA boss June Raine.
It is the first so-called bivalent corona vaccine to be approved in Great Britain. The vaccines available to date have helped reduce the number of corona-related hospitalizations and deaths. However, they mostly target earlier strains of the coronavirus.
The Moderna vaccine, dubbed Spikevax bivalent Original/Omicron, targets both the original strain of coronavirus, which first appeared in 2020, and the Omicron variant BA.1. "Good" results were also achieved for the BA.4 and BA.5 subtypes of the omicron variant, the MHRA announced.
The adapted Moderna vaccine is currently also being examined by the EU medicines agency EMA. At the same time, the EMA is examining an adapted vaccine from Biontech/Pfizer. Its approval is planned for autumn. Against the background of the rapidly spreading omicron subtypes, the World Health Organization had warned in July that the pandemic was "anything but over".
