[1/2] A vial and sryinge are seen in front of a displayed Moderna logo in this illustration taken January 11, 2021.
REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSept 6 (Reuters) - Moderna (MRNA.O) on Wednesday said clinical trial data showed its updated COVID-19 vaccine will likely be effective against the highly-mutated BA.2.86 subvariant of the coronavirus that has raised fears of a resurgence of infections.
The Omicron offshoot carries more than 35 mutations in key portions of the virus compared with XBB.1.5, the dominant variant through most of 2023 and the target of the updated shots.
Moderna said it had shared the new finding on its vaccine with regulators and submitted it for peer review publication.
European regulators have since backed the Pfizer/BioNTech shot, with Britain's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency approving the vaccine on Tuesday, but have yet to make any announcements on Moderna’s updated vaccine.
Persons:
Dado Ruvic, Jacqueline Miller, Moderna, COVID, BioNTech, Patrick Wingrove, Bill Berkrot
Organizations:
REUTERS, World Health Organization, WHO, U.S . Centers for Disease Control, Prevention, ” Moderna, CDC, Omicron, U.S . Food, Drug Administration, Pfizer, Moderna, Britain's Medicines, Healthcare, Agency, Reuters, Thomson
Locations:
The Massachusetts, Switzerland, South Africa, Israel, Denmark, U.S, Britain, New York