askST: Can current vaccines protect against new Covid-19 variants?

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The key question is when the new vaccines to protect against the new variants will be available.

The existing XBB monovalent vaccine is still effective in preventing severe disease among seniors aged 60 and above, which result in hospitalisation and death.

Due to the genetic changes in the spike proteins, a newer KP.2 variant, derived from the JN.1 Covid-19 sub-variant, which appeared in September 2023 in France, has emerged bearing both of these mutations and is currently the predominant strain in many countries. 1. Since the most updated vaccine targets XBB.1.5, a variant that is notably different from JN.1 and its descendants, can it protect us?

Professor Paul Tambyah, the president of the International Society for Infectious Diseases, said given the current widespread infections by JN.1 and previously by XBB; and with the high vaccination rates of both the Wuhan strain and bivalent vaccines in Singapore, it is quite possible there may be some benefits from the XBB monovalent vaccine. These benefits cannot be simply picked up by laboratory investigative procedures that measure antibody levels.

 

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