Moderna announced on Wednesday that it administered study participants the first doses of a modified vaccine designed to combat coronavirus variants.
The company said it is looking at the effectiveness of two different modified vaccines in a small study involving 60 people who have already received the original vaccine.
Some of the participants will receive a booster dose of a modified vaccine designed specifically to combat a variant of the virus first identified in South Africa. This variant has been shown to reduce to some degree the immune response caused by the original Modern vaccine.
Other participants will receive a booster dose that combines the modified vaccine with the original vaccine to produce a “multivalent” vaccine designed to fight multiple strains at once.
The studies are part of the company’s strategy to prepare for variants of the virus, if necessary.
Moderna says studies have shown that her original vaccine can protect against variants, but there is still a six-fold reduction in the level of antibodies produced against the South African strain.
Therefore, “very cautiously,” the company said it is preparing a booster dose specifically targeted against this strain, if necessary.
Pfizer is also preparing for the possibility of needing booster doses.
In addition, Moderna said the National Institutes of Health will be conducting a study with its modified vaccine on participants who have not yet received the original vaccine.