Omicron: Those already infected, vaccinated have stronger basic protection, study says

published in Emerging microorganisms and infectionsThe findings of the study, conducted by the National Institute for Food and Drug Control, China, also suggest that although a third dose-enhancing strategy “could significantly boost immunity”, protection from Omicron may be “compromised” – but for More research is needed to understand this better.

“However, the test tube (or ‘in-vitro’, scientifically) samples of Omicron examined in this new research show that it exceeds all other forms in its potential ability to ward off the protection obtained from previous infection or vaccination.” more”. The study said.

The researcher said the results support recent findings in South Africa that uncovered omicrons that were “easy to evade immunity”. “We found that the large number of mutations of the omicron variant caused significant alterations of neutralization sensitivity against people who already had COVID-19,” said lead author Yuchun Wang, of the National Institute for Food and Drug Control in China. Senior Research Fellow.

“However, the average protection level against Omicron is still higher than the baseline, which indicated that there may still be some security impact to be seen,” Wang said.

Wang cautioned that since antibody protection — in the form of a previous infection or vaccination — gradually decreases over a six-month period, Omicron “may be able to evade immunity even better.”

The team of scientists predicted that “the third dose-enhancing strategy could significantly enhance immunity”, with “protection from omicrons being compromised”. The expert team of 11 scientists looked at 28 serum samples from patients who had been cured of the original strain of SARS-CoV-2. They tested these against in-vitro omicron samples as well as four other strains marked ‘of concern’ by the World Health Organization (WHO), such as Delta, and two types marked ‘of interest’.

“This study confirms the enhanced immunogenicity of the Omicron variant, which sounds alarm to the world and has important implications for the development of public health planning and matching strategies,” Wang said.

Now, the team says there is an urgent need to conduct more research, not only in-vitro but also in real-world studies, to better understand omicrons. And, in particular, whether it “can evade vaccinated immunity to cause more severe disease and death. This needs to be re-evaluated whether antibodies can still be effective against the Omicron variant,” the authors said. Huh.”

“The precise effect on human protection may be influenced by more factors such as the infectivity of the Omicron variant relative to other types of human populations and the viral fitness of the Omicron variant after humans have been infected,” the study said. More population studies including immune protection and symptoms in people infected with Omicron are needed to fully establish the global impact of Omicron in the control of the COVID-19 pandemic.