Hospitals, drug companies and Biden administration officials are racing to address one of the Omicron variant’s biggest threats: Two of the three monoclonal antibody treatments that doctors have depended on to keep Covid-19 patients from becoming seriously ill do not appear to thwart the latest version of the coronavirus.

The one such treatment that is still likely to work against Omicron is now so scarce that many doctors and hospitals have already run through their supplies.

Continue reading “Hospitals Scramble as Antibody Treatments Fail Against Omicron” →

The European Commission on Monday authorized a Covid-19 vaccine made by Novavax, making it the fifth vaccine available in the 27 nations of the European Union.

“At a time where the Omicron variant is rapidly spreading, and where we need to step up vaccination and the administration of boosters, I am particularly pleased with today’s authorization of the Novavax vaccine,” Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said in a statement.

Continue reading “Novavax’s Covid Vaccine Is Authorized in Europe” →

A flurry of new laboratory studies indicate that vaccines, and especially booster shots, may offer protection against the worst outcomes from the fast-spreading Omicron coronavirus variant. The highly mutated virus, however, will still cause many breakthrough infections in vaccinated people and in those who have been infected with older versions of the virus, according to the research.

At a World Health Organization meeting on Wednesday, scientists reported on several studies suggesting that T cells in vaccinated people can put up a strong defense against the variant, which could help prevent severe disease, hospitalization and death.

Continue reading “New Studies Raise Hopes That Vaccines Prevent Severe Disease From Omicron” →

At a World Health Organization meeting on Wednesday, scientists offered some encouraging findings about immunity against the fast-spreading Omicron variant of the coronavirus. Several laboratory studies suggest that so-called T cells in vaccinated people can put up a strong defense against the variant, which could help prevent severe disease, hospitalization and death.

The findings are a welcome departure from a torrent of worrying new data about Omicron. The variant’s mutations enable it to evade many of the antibodies produced either by vaccination or infection with previous variants. But antibodies are not the only important player in a person’s immune response to the virus.

Continue reading “Vaccines will likely protect against severe disease from Omicron, new lab studies suggest.” →