Omicron Markedly Resistant to Vaccines and Booster Shots, US Study Claims

A new study by Columbia University in the United States says the Omicron variant of COVID-19 is “markedly resistant” to existing vaccines and antibody treatments, and that even booster shots may provide only modest protection against infection.

The draft study on Omicron resistance was led by renowned American researcher, Dr. David Ho, and early evidence suggests the lightning quick-spreading strain is likely to cause a massive wave of so-called breakthrough infections even among fully vaccinated people.

“We found Omicron to be markedly resistant to neutralisation in individuals vaccinated with one of the four widely used COVID-19 vaccines. Even serum from persons vaccinated and boosted with mRNA-based vaccines exhibited substantially diminished neutralising activity against Omicron,” says the study.

The study is still in the so-called “pre-print” stage, meaning it has not been reviewed by other experts or edited by any scientific journal. It was released last Wednesday by the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center, which is now focused on fighting COVID-19.

The study says existing antibody therapies, like the monoclonal antibody cocktails that are credited with saving many lives during current and previous COVID-19 waves, appear to be mostly ineffective against Omicron.
It also noted that natural antibodies from previous infections are not effective in warding off Omicron, meaning people who have had COVID-19 in the past are virtually unprotected from reinfection in the coming Omicron wave.
The Omicron variant has now been detected in over 70 countries. It has a high number of mutations (32) in its spike protein, and preliminary evidence suggests an increased risk of reinfection, when compared with other variants of concern.

Researchers and scientists are intensifying their investigations to understand the transmissibility, severity and impact of the Omicron variant in relation to the available vaccines, diagnostics and treatment and whether it is driving the latest surge in COVID-19 infections.

Working with African governments to accelerate studies and bolster the response to the new variant, World Health Organization (WHO) is urging countries to sequence between 75 and 150 samples weekly.

“The detection and timely reporting of the new variant by Botswana and South Africa has bought the world time. We have a window of opportunity but must act quickly and ramp up detection and prevention measures. Countries must adjust their COVID-19 response and stop a surge in cases from sweeping across Africa and possibly overwhelming already-stretched health facilities,” said Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa.

The emergence of Omicron is rattling countries around the globe and underlines the importance of pandemic preparedness – the focus of a special session of the World Health Assembly that wrapped up this week.

Countries agreed to launch a global process to draft and negotiate a convention, agreement or other international instrument under the WHO Constitution to strengthen pandemic prevention preparedness and response.

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