Moderna is testing two booster-shot options – one aimed specifically at the South African variant and the other to combat new mutations widely. Laboratory research using blood from people and monkeys who received the company’s vaccine found that the UK variant did not appear to reduce the production of neutralizing antibodies. But the South African variant showed a six-fold reduction, the company said.
Another survey suggested the UK variant it is more transmissible than previous versions of the virus. On Friday, a UK government scientific advisory council said “there is a realistic possibility” that the UK variant is also more deadly.
Moderna said the development of the booster is a precaution because its already authorized two-dose regimen still offers substantial protection against strains from the UK and South Africa in the laboratory study.
“While we seek to defeat the COVID-19 virus, which created a global pandemic, we believe that it is imperative to be proactive as the virus evolves,” stated Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel in a statement. The company is initiating human testing for the South African injection “just in case,” he added.
Moderna conducted the laboratory study in collaboration with NIAID and published the research online at bioRxiv before peer review. The company said it would submit the study to a peer-reviewed journal.