Posted on 01/06/2022 1:06:00 PM PST by Red Badger
An additional "booster" dose of Moderna or Pfizer mRNA-based vaccine is needed to provide immunity against the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, according to a study by researchers at the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard. The results of this study, reported in the journal Cell, indicate that traditional dosing regimens of COVID-19 vaccines available in the United States do not produce antibodies capable of recognizing and neutralizing the Omicron variant.
In late November, health officials in South Africa reported that a previously unknown variant of SARS-CoV-2 was rapidly spreading throughout the country. The variant, given the name Omicron by the World Health Organization, would soon prove to be far more transmissible than Delta, the variant that previously had caused the majority of COVID-19 infections. "People desperately wanted to know whether current vaccines protect against Omicron," says the senior author of the Cell paper, Alejandro Balazs, Ph.D., whose laboratory at the Ragon Institute investigates how to engineer immunity against infectious diseases.
To find answers, Balazs collaborated with a team that included the lead author of the Cell paper, Wilfredo F. Garcia-Beltran, MD, a clinical pathology resident at MGH and a clinician-scientist fellow at the Ragon Institute. The first step was to construct a harmless version of Omicron known as a "pseudovirus" that could be used in the laboratory to evaluate the effectiveness of the three COVID-19 vaccines available in the United States, which include the two-dose Pfizer and Moderna injections and the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. The pseudovirus that Balazs and colleagues created mimicked the behavior of Omicron, which has 34 mutations on its "spike" protein that are not found on the original strain of SARS-Cov-2 first detected in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. Scientists believe that these mutations may be partially responsible for Omicron's rapid spread throughout the world.
Next, Garcia-Beltran worked with colleagues at MGH, including hematology-oncology fellow Vivek Naranbhai, MD, Ph.D., to acquire blood samples from 239 individuals who had been fully vaccinated with one of the three COVID-19 vaccines. The study subjects included employees within the Massachusetts General Brigham healthcare system and residents of Chelsea, Massachusetts, a community with a high rate of COVID-19 infections. "It was important to us to have a diverse population represented in the study," says Garcia-Beltran. Included in this group were 70 men and women who had received a third booster dose of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, according to recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The blood samples were used to measure how effectively each vaccine induces production of protective immunity in the form of antibodies against the Omicron pseudovirus, as well as the Delta and wild type viruses. The results were striking. "We detected very little neutralization of the Omicron variant pseudovirus when we used samples taken from people who were recently vaccinated with two doses of mRNA vaccine or one dose of Johnson & Johnson," says Balazs. "But individuals who received three doses of mRNA vaccine had very significant neutralization against the Omicron variant."
It's not yet clear why an mRNA booster dramatically improves immune protection against Omicron, but Garcia-Beltran says one possibility is that an additional dose creates antibodies that bind more tightly to the spike protein, increasing their effectiveness. Also, a booster dose may generate antibodies that target regions of the spike protein that are common to all forms of SARS-CoV-2. Both theories may be true, says Garcia-Beltran.
Balazs notes that the three-dose mRNA vaccine regimen—that is, the traditional two doses and a booster of Pfizer or Moderna vaccines—provides somewhat lower levels of neutralizing antibodies against Omicron than it does against the COVID-19 wild type strain or Delta variant. But the study's results strongly support the CDC's advice that COVID-19 booster shots are appropriate for anyone 16 and older, and that mRNA vaccines are preferred.
Balazs is a principal investigator at the Ragon Institute and an assistant professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Garcia-Beltran recently established his own laboratory at the Ragon Institute.
Explore further
New evidence that boosters may be crucial in protecting against omicron
More information:
Wilfredo F. Garcia-Beltran et al, mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine boosters induce neutralizing immunity against SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Cell (2022). DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2021.12.033
Journal information: Cell
Provided by Massachusetts General Hospital
“Our side” should be self explanatory.
Agree that the messaging by “the experts” has been horribly inept since this all began. Also agree that the vaxxes are not some magic panacea. What they DO seem to do is prevent those who take them from the most severe outcomes that unvaxxed people are more susceptible to. And if people want to take Invermectin or other “off-label” preventatives, why not let them?
That said, we (mostly Republicans and conservatives), sadly, have “downplayed” (as our own POTUS himself famously said to Woodward) the virus since it started. Instead of doing the few things we COULD do - (good) masks, social distancing, not basically acting like it’s still 2019..we made it a political issue and almost a badge of Republican/Conservative honor to fight things every step of the way. (Example: masks. It was proven long ago by numerous Asian countries that GOOD [ie: surgical or N95/KN95 masks worked - on SARS-COV-1 as well as COVID. Asian countries largely avoided the big case count spread we’ve had as they have 90-95+% mask usage. Did we? Nope! It became some issue about “freedom” instead, and a badge of honor to fight masks. [I agree cloth masks are stupid and never worked, BTW..but surgical and KN95/N95 DID work in every Asian country that used them to keep case counts and deaths down]. There are so many other examples..)
This. Listening to Dr. Robert Malone (inventor of the mRna vacccine) was enough to convince me these vaccines are ineffective.
ANd I am a walking comorbidity. 60’s, overweight with life long thyroid issues and afib. I am not vaccinated. Had the original Covid Nov 2020. Treated with quercitin, zinc and some homeopathy with no issues. Here’s my week thus far:
Vaccinated daughter and vaccinated BF (he’s in the Space Force and she works in the health field so it was “mandated”) visited last week. They were both sick on the last two days they were here, and it turned out they are covid positive.
Middle daughter who lives with us and her BF are both mildly ill - covid test pending, but likely positive. They also had Covid when we did back in 2020, but were skeptical of our “unofficial” treatment protocol and didn’t participate.
Hubby and I started up with the quercetin and zinc as soon as the one daughter felt sick. We still have a few days to monitor from the original exposure, and now potentially a second ongoing exposure. Neither one of us has a single symptom.
Will we ultimately get sick? Probably. If we do, we will continue with what we’re doing and treat symptoms. Good health is certainly a blessing. Taking a proactive approach also helps.
Two doses - no protection. Third dose - protection.
And they don’t recognize any alteration of the immune system.
I read recently that the booster was just a half-dose of the first two shots.
As usual, sum ting wong somewhere.
Nice note, thanks.
Will you ultimately get sick? Not necessarily.
What homeopathic remedies did you use to treat covid? I have a lot of homeopathics, but I don’t know about anything that treats it. There’s a Natural Grocer in the neighborhood and they have a lot of homeopathics, more than any other store in our town. Will buy some.
So my son needs a generic “booster” to attend college in 2 weeks. He’s scheduled for a J&J.
So now will he have to take a specific “omicron booster” as well, or instead, and will be need it within the next 2 weeks in order to attend classes, and will it be ready in time?
I heard Dr. Malone (I think it was) on Bannon’s War Room 3 weeks ago who stated flatly “the current vaccines don’t protect against Omicron.” Just a direct simple statement.
https://www.naturalgrocers.com/store-directory
NaturalGrocers stores. Lots of homeopathics and very well educated staff.
Baby daughter is recovering from COVID and Mrs. 31R1O’s and my vaccine worked as intended. Big brother didn’t get it but he had it last spring.
We weren’t boosted either.
Apparently the definition of being immune has changed.
Does this mean we can go after all the political folks who received immunity during the whole Russia-gate scandal?
Trivialized because it’s trivial - in proportion to the response.
Influenza has always been a thing. Only 9 out of 21,500 placebo people got hospitalized “serious” covid in the Phase 3 Pfizer study. The post-vaccine population studies are all similar. The vaccines reduce the risk of serious covid by 0.04%.
So - No need to form a new Covidianism religion over it and a give lightly tested gene therapy to treat a low-risk sickness - to hundreds of millions.
Mass Psychosis is real. Get over it.
The initial recommendation was Thuja 30 twice daily as a viral interruptor/preventative.
For symptoms, Gelsemium 30 or 200 for fatigue, Eupatorium 200 for body aches and Kali Carb 200 or Antimonium Tart 200 for cough. All of these twice daily. I also swear by Sambucol, which is a general flu/cold preparation that can be found at any Walgreens.
The infection was staged in order to steal the election...
Wow, looks awesome.
I am in the Frozen Tundra...nothing like that here. I typically use Washington Homeopathics for most of my remedies.
Boiron in a pinch. https://www.homeopathyworks.com/
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