Moderna Chief Medical Officer States Potential of Omicron Vaccine
Nov 29, 2021 By MarketDepth
According to Moderna’s (NASDAQ: MRNA) Chief Medical Officer Paul Burton, the company could create a vaccine against the new omicron coronavirus variant by 2022.
“We should know about the ability of the current vaccine to provide protection in the next couple of weeks, but the remarkable thing about the MRNA vaccines, Moderna platform is that we can move very fast.”
Burton said on BBC’s Andrew Marr Show.
“If we have to make a brand new vaccine I think that’s going to be early 2022 before that’s really going to be available in large quantities,” the Moderna chief added.
Variant of Concern
The World Health Organization considers Omicron a “variant of concern,” which means it is more contagious than other variants. Omicron has 30 mutations to the spike protein, which allows it to enter the body. Ultimately, officials have warned that the current Covid vaccines could prove not to be fully effective against the variant.
Originated in South Africa
Omicron, which was first detected in South Africa, has already spread across various countries such as Israel and Belgium. The spread prompted travel restrictions in Europe, Asia, and North America, according to Insider’s Aria Bendix.
Testing Against Omicron
Moderna is testing its current vaccine against the Omicron variant.
“Since early 2021, Moderna has advanced a comprehensive strategy to anticipate new variants of concern,” the company said. “The company has repeatedly demonstrated the ability to advance new candidates to clinical testing in 60 to 90 days.”
