By Alexander Smith - NBC News
The multinational Johnson & Johnson (J&J) announced this Wednesday that a booster injection of its vaccine against COVID-19 provides a "rapid and solid increase" of antibodies to fight the infection when injected into people who have already received their single dose. .
Interim data reveals that people who had already received the J&J vaccine experienced a nine-fold increase in antibodies compared to 28 days after the first dose, the pharmaceutical company announced.
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That increase was seen in trial participants ages 18 to 55, and in people older than 65 who received a lower booster dose, according to the statement.
The study was conducted in anticipation of the need for booster doses against the coronavirus, according to the company.
The findings were submitted to the pre-printed medical journal MedRxiv.
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Mathai Mammen, global director of Research and Development for Janssen at Johnson & Johnson, stated that the company was eager to discuss with public health officials a potential strategy to implement a J&J booster vaccine.
Stephanie Oriard Tallavas, 29, visiting from Mexico City receives the Johnson and Johnson vaccine from Registered Nurse Jonica Portillo in Los Angeles, California on July 23, 2021. Al Seib / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
The pharmaceutical company said it was "in dialogue" with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as well as with the Agency. European Medicines Agency (EMA), which is the main regulator in Europe, and the World Health Organization (WHO), on the use of its booster injection.
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In the United States, booster doses of COVID-19 vaccines are being planned for the fall for those who received the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines, which require two pricks.
