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Superb! Studies show when administered as boosters, mono- and bivalent Omicron BA.4/BA.5-adapted vaccines ENHANCE neutralization breadth, and in a bivalent format, may also have the potential to confer protection to individuals with NO pre-existing immunity against SARS-CoV-2!🧵
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Researchers recently reported that breakthrough infections of vaccinated individuals with Omicron sublineages BA.1 and BA.2 were associated with distinct patterns of cross-neutralizing activity against SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs). BA.2 breakthrough infection mediated
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overall stronger cross-neutralization of BA.2 and its descendants (BA.2.12.1, BA.4, and BA.5) compared to BA.1 breakthrough infection. Here, researchers characterized the effect of Omicron BA.4/BA.5 S (spike) glycoprotein exposure on the magnitude and breadth of the
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neutralizing antibody response upon breakthrough infection in vaccinated individuals and in mice upon booster vaccination. They showed that immune sera from triple mRNA-vaccinated individuals with subsequent Omicron BA.4/BA.5 breakthrough infection displayed broad AND robust
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neutralizing activity against Omicron BA.1, BA.2, BA.2.12.1, and BA.4/BA.5. Administration of a prototypic BA.4/BA.5-adapted mRNA booster vaccine to mice following SARS-CoV-2 wild-type strain-based primary immunization was ALSO associated with similarly broad
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neutralizing activity. Immunization of naïve mice with a bivalent mRNA vaccine (wild-type + Omicron BA.4/BA.5) induced strong and broad neutralizing activity against Omicron VOCs and previous variants.
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These findings suggest that when administered as boosters, mono- and bivalent Omicron BA.4/BA.5-adapted vaccines may enhance neutralization breadth, and in a bivalent format may also have the potential to confer protection to individuals with no pre-existing immunity against
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While we are here, I recommend reading ’s breakdown of this study. He discusses the impact of other variants on the rise (like BA.2.75.2 or BQ.1.1 which ARE still sub-variants of Omicron) and these vaccines (“DON’T write the vaccines off.”) •
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IMAGINE THAT Anyway: please get your boosters. Exposure to BA.4/BA.5 Spike glycoprotein drives pan-Omicron neutralization in vaccine-experienced humans and mice biorxiv.org/content/10.110
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Together these findings add to our current understanding on how vaccine boosters adapted to Omicron VOCs in a bivalent format shape immunity and suggest that exposure to Omicron BA.4/.5 S glycoprotein may confer heightened protection against the currently circulating and
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potential future Omicron VOCs. Conclusion: “Our finding that immunization of naïve mice with the BNT162b2/BA.4/.5 bivalent vaccine elicits strong neutralizing antibody responses against the wild-type strain as well as Omicron and non-Omicron VOCs suggest that this bivalent
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Is this the Pfizer bivalent that is currently available in the US targeted at B4/5?. How does it compare to the Moderna bivalent mRNA-1273.214 for B1?
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