The study is in pre-print, and still pending peer-review, but it is the first scientific evidence that the vaccines could be less effective against the variant. Last week, experts in South Africa found that natural antibodies provided by previous Covid infection are not effective at preventing the variant either.Ī study released on Tuesday by the African Health Research Institute (AHRI) also found that people who had received the Pfizer vaccine - but not the booster yet - had 40 times less antibodies capable of preventing Omicron infection than they had other variants. It is the most mutated Covid strain yet, with more than 50 found, including 30 on the spike protein which the current crop of vaccines target - giving it the ability to evade vaccines. The Omicron variant was first discovered in the Gauteng province of South Africa in late November, when more than 77 cases of the mutant strain were detected. While these cases are mild, Coetzee says, it presents a worrying sign about how infectious the variant is. In America, none of these people would have been eligible for a COVID-19 booster shot yet if they received either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, since officials recommend the additional shot six months after the vaccine sequence is complete. The vaccines were relatively fresh as well, with three of the people having received the final dose of their vaccine at some point between late July and late August, and a third receiving the last shot in October. Of the 64, 37 are unvaccinated, 26 were breakthrough infections, with 19 having received the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and seven receiving the Johnson & Johnson shot.įour of those breakthrough infections were among people that had also contracted Covid before, two who had received the Pfizer vaccine and two that had gotten the J&J shot. South Africa (green), along with many other nations, has suffered a massive spike in Covid cases since the Omicron COVID-19 variant was first detected last monthĬoetzee said that her medical center has recently treated 64 Covid patients with either confirmed or believed cases of the variant, with many being outpatient cases that are not severe. South Africa has also suffered a massive spike in Covid cases since the variant was first discovered, though officials have continued to report that infections caused by Omicron are generally less sever than those of other variants. Officials at Pfizer reported Wednesday that their vaccine had diminished capabilities of preventing infection from Omicron, though the additional booster shot could The variant, discovered last month by officials in the nation, is believed to be the most infectious yet with the ability to bypass vaccine immunity due to its many mutations. She did note that the vaccine is effective at preventing severe Covid infection, with more than 90 percent of ICU patients in the medical center she works at, in Pretoria, being unvaccinated. The Omicron variant can still cause infection in people that have both received the COVID-19 vaccine and have have previously had the virus, one expert says.ĭr Angelique Coetzee, chairperson of the South African Medical Association, told CNN on Wednesday that she has seen multiple people with both types of immunity test positive for the virus.
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