Corona vaccination: New study on effectiveness against Omikron - probably also bad news for drugs

Created: 01/13/2022, 05:25 AM

From: Bedrettin Bölükbasi

According to a new study, the effectiveness of corona vaccinations against the Omicron mutation is decreasing.

© Jörg Carstensen / dpa

The corona vaccination is apparently less effective against the Omikron variant, shows a new study.

However, a booster can still increase protection.

Munich - The vaccination against the coronavirus is the central means in the fight against the pandemic.

Politicians and experts draw attention to this again and again.

With the appearance of new variants, however, the effectiveness of the previous vaccines is increasingly discussed.

A study in which scientists from the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) also took part, dealt another blow to the hopes of the effectiveness of vaccinations against the highly contagious omicron mutant.

Accordingly, the vaccines are probably less effective against the variant.

A booster vaccination should still be helpful.

Corona study: Drugs for treatment not effective against Omikron - "lose effectiveness"

The study, in which the effectiveness of vaccinations and antiviral drugs against Omikron was examined, was published in the renowned scientific journal "Cell". FAU presented key results of the study on its official website. "As the omicron variant of the coronavirus continues to spread, some of the means that medicine can use to treat infected people seem to have lost their effectiveness," said the university's publication.

Omikron is now resistant to drugs that have proven to be extremely effective against previous variants of the virus.

"The most important - and most dramatic - finding of the study is that most of the so-called therapeutic antibodies that are approved for the treatment of COVID-19 infected people do not work against the Omikron variant," said the university.

Corona study: vaccination is less effective against Omicron mutants - "confirms earlier studies"

In addition, the study put a damper on expectations of effectively combating the mutant with the existing vaccines: "The researchers were also able to confirm that vaccinations against the new virus variant have a weaker effect." react, stressed the university.

Previously effective antibodies would inhibit the "omicron virus" to a lesser extent, both in people who had been vaccinated twice or three times, as well as those who had recovered, which was a confirmation of "previous international studies on the omicron mutation".

Despite the explanations about the vaccination, FAU was also able to report positive news regarding the booster vaccination.

Corona study: Booster vaccination helps against Omikron - researchers emphasize "cross immunization"

“Nevertheless, there is good news: With the third, ie the booster, vaccination, in general, quite good protection can be achieved,” emphasized the text of the study.

At this point, a so-called “cross-immunization” - vaccination with different vaccines - is even more effective.

Although the study examined “samples from people vaccinated purely with Biontech-Pfizer and with Biontech-Pfizer / AstraZeneca”, it is assumed that “our results can also be transferred to those who were vaccinated with Moderna or Moderna. Combinations were immunized ", informed Prof. Dr.

Hans-Martin Jäck, Head of the Molecular Immunology Department at the Erlangen University Hospital at FAU.

According to the university, researchers involved in the study are calling for an urgent adjustment of drugs and vaccinations to Omikron.

Despite the weaker effect, a vaccination is important and "urgently recommended".

"So the motto is: get vaccinated and get the booster vaccination," the university website quoted Professor Jäck.