Biontech starts first study on Omicron vaccine: Sahin explains when it will be ready and names great advantage

Created: 01/25/2022, 14:25

Biontech founder Ugur Sahin speaks at the topping-out ceremony for the new Biontech "iNeST" production facility.

© Frank Rumpenhorst/dpa/Archive

Biontech/Pfizer has already announced an omicron vaccine for March 2022.

The first clinical study for the special Omicron vaccine, which is said to have another property, is now starting.

Mainz - Biontech* and Pfizer have started their first clinical study to investigate a corona vaccine specially tailored to the omicron variant.

The vaccine candidate is to be tested for safety, tolerability and effectiveness in healthy 18 to 55-year-old adults, the Mainz-based company and its US partner announced on Tuesday.

Biontech/Pfizer: This is how the first clinical study for the Omicron vaccine is going

The study will include up to 1,420 test subjects, who will be divided into three groups.

The first group includes a good 600 participants who have already received two doses of the previous vaccine between 90 and 180 days before the start of the study and are now to receive one or two doses of the Omikron vaccine.

The second group, almost as large, consists of boosted people who receive an additional dose of the conventional vaccine or a dose of the omicron vaccine.

The third group with a good 200 test persons consists of unvaccinated people who have not yet had Covid-19 and who then receive three doses of the Omicron vaccine.

Omicron vaccine from Biontech/Pfizer - focus on new development step

“Vaccines continue to offer a high level of protection against severe cases caused by omicron.

However, the first data now indicate that the vaccination protection against infections and mild to moderate COVID-19 diseases decreases more quickly than with previous SARS-CoV-2 strains," says Biontech boss Ugur Sahin* according to a current press release.

In addition, Biontech boss explained: "The study is part of our scientific approach to develop a variant-based vaccine that offers similar protection against Omicron as we have observed with previous variants, but at the same time lasts longer."

The Mainz-based pharmaceutical company and its US partner announced about two weeks ago that they had already started production of a corona vaccine adapted to the Omicron variant for later commercial use. Biontech had stated that the two companies are "ready to supply the market by March, once regulatory approvals have been received." The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has not yet stated whether it considers an Omicron-adapted vaccine with a different composition than the vaccine currently used to be necessary.

Omikron is causing the number of infections to explode in Germany.

Unvaccinated people can soon be vaccinated against Corona with Novavax.

The date for the delivery of the first vaccine doses has now been set.