PFE - WHO recommends updating COVID shots to add XBB.1 variants

2023-05-18 14:13:29 ET

Following a meeting of an advisory panel, the World Health Organization announced its recommendations supporting the use of reformulated COVID vaccines to reflect the currently dominant variants such as XBB.1

Noting that XBB.1 descendent lineages have outnumbered other COVID variants globally as of May, the WHO’s Technical Advisory Group on COVID-19 Vaccine Composition recommends reformulating the currently used COVID shots.

Leading COVID-19 vaccine makers: Pfizer ( NYSE: PFE ), BioNTech ( NASDAQ: BNTX ), Moderna ( NASDAQ: MRNA ), Novavax ( NASDAQ: NVAX ), Johnson & Johnson ( NYSE: JNJ ), AstraZeneca ( AZN ), Sinovac Biotech ( SVA ), Sinopharm Group ( OTCPK:SHTDF ) ( OTCPK:SHTDY ), CanSino Biologics ( OTCPK:CASBF ), Valneva SE ( VALN )

According to data compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the XBB group of COVID viruses, such as XBB.1.5 and XBB.1.16, dominate the U.S. making up an estimated 64% and ~14% of cases, respectively.

Citing the similarities between the two strains, the WHO panel recommends that developers use XBB.1 or XBB.1.16 to reformulate their vaccines to improve protection, particularly against symptomatic disease.

While reiterating that the currently approved vaccines continue to protect against severe disease and death, the group recommends a pivot to reformulated shots citing a lack of antibody response generated by the former shots against the latest variants.

The WHO recommendations precede an FDA advisory committee meeting in June scheduled to discuss the strain composition of COVID vaccines to be used in a fall immunization drive.

More on updates to COVID vaccines

• FDA advisory panel suggests regular bivalent COVID immunization
• FDA sets January meeting to consider further updates to COVID shots
• FDA plans an annual schedule for updated COVID shots

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