New vaccine for Omicron? Pharma companies in wait-and-watch mode

With focus shifting to the Omicron variant, countries across the world are ramping up vaccinations, intensifying testing and shutting down borders.

Meanwhile, the clamour for booster doses to increase protection from the new variant is also growing

Ahmedabad-based Zydus Cadila said that it would need around eight weeks to have a vaccine ready.

Read | Booster doses of Covid vaccines easiest barrier against Omicron, must be created: Virologist Dr T Jacob John

“As of now there is not enough data to say that we need a new vaccine to target this variant. We are, however, keeping the construct ready. Unless this strain becomes lethal or serious, there may not be a specific need to develop a new vaccine," managing director Sharvil Patel told Business Standard.

“We will not immediately take it to the clinical trial stage. The advantage of RNA or DNA technology platforms is that one can easily replace the sequence and make a new product. So we are continuing our research on that,” Patel said.

Meanwhile Serum Institute of India (SII) Chief Executive Officer Adar Poonawalla said that it was too early to comment on whether vaccines will or will not target Omicron.

"Scientists at Oxford University are continuing their research, and based on their findings, we in six months may come up with a vaccine that would act as a booster," Poonawalla told the publication. He added that SII was prepared in case booster shots are allowed.

Other companies, such as, Pfizer and Moderna too said that they are working on developing versions of its vaccines and booster shots to target the new variant.

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