Pfizer launches Omicron jab trial

The pharmaceutical firms have launched clinical trials of the new jab for adults aged 18 to 55, both as a two-dose primary series and as a booster dose.

In a press release, Pfizer explained the trial was part of the company’s “ongoing efforts to address Omicron and determine the potential need for variant-based vaccines”.

Pfizer’s senior vice president and head of vaccine research and development Kathrin Jansen said the vaccine trial was an “essential” part of the fight against Omicron and possible future strains.

“While current research and real-world data show that boosters continue to provide a high level of protection against severe disease and hospitalisation with Omicron, we recognise the need to be prepared in the event this protection wanes over time and to potentially help address Omicron and new variants in the future,” Dr Jansen said in a statement.

“Staying vigilant against the virus requires us to identify new approaches for people to maintain a high level of protection, and we believe developing and investigating variant-based vaccines, like this one, are essential in our efforts towards this goal.”

BioNTech CEO and co-founder Professor Ugur Sahin agreed, and said scientists hoped to increase protection against the illness.

“Vaccines continue to offer strong protection against severe disease caused by Omicron. Yet, emerging data indicate vaccine-induced protection against infection and mild to moderate disease wanes more rapidly than was observed with prior strains,” Prof Sahin said.

“This study is part of our science-based approach to develop a variant-based vaccine that achieves a similar level of protection against Omicron as it did with earlier variants but with longer duration of protection.”

More than 1400 adults are believed to be taking part in the trial.

Meanwhile, Moderna is also working towards a trial of its own Omicron-specific vaccine, while Oxford University and AstraZeneca have also started working on a new version of their jab.

The announcement comes as the Omicron strain, which emerged in late 2021, continues to wreak havoc across the globe.

On Monday, World Health Organisation director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told an executive board meeting that is was a grave error to assume Omicron is “the endgame” and that the pandemic is almost over.

“There are different scenarios for how the pandemic could play out and how the acute phase could end. But it’s dangerous to assume that Omicron will be the last variant or that we are in the endgame,” Dr Tedros said.

“On the contrary, globally, the conditions are ideal for more variants to emerge.

“It’s true that we will be living with Covid for the foreseeable future and that we will need to learn to manage it through a sustained and integrated system for acute respiratory diseases.”

Originally published as ‘Essential’: Pfizer and BioNTech launch clinical trial for Omicron-specific jab