Moderna says Omicron-targeted COVID shot shows better response

The vaccine, which was given as a fourth dose in a trial that enrolled more than 800 people, raised virus-neutralizing antibodies by eight-fold against Omicron.

A vial and a syringe are seen in front of a displayed Moderna logo, in this illustration taken, November 27, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

The company said it plans to submit data on the vaccine, which targets Omicron as well as the original coronavirus strain, to regulators in the coming weeks and the doses could be available to consumers in late summer, sending its shares up 3%.

“We expect those to be relatively straightforward discussions and submissions,” he said.

It is not known if countries including the United States will adopt annual fall boosters, similar to the flu market.

He said while he expects the FDA to authorize the vaccine, it is not known if the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will recommend the shot for all adults or for a subset of the population such as older people.

Chief Executive Stephane Bancel said the company had been ramping up manufacturing of the new booster with an aim to be ready to ship as early as August.

In the study, which did not measure vaccine effectiveness, the booster, the vaccine generated greater antibodies against the Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta variants compared to the original shot.

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