"Janssen, Sinopharm, Sputnik V Vaccines 'Cannot Produce Neutralizing Antibodies,' Less Effective Against Omicron"

Johnson & Johnson's Janssen COVID-19 vaccine Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] A study has found that the Janssen vaccine and the Chinese Sinopharm and Russian Sputnik V vaccines are less effective against the new COVID-19 variant Omicron.

On the 17th (local time), according to Bloomberg News, a joint research team from Swiss pharmaceutical company Humabs Biomed and the University of Washington analyzed the efficacy of six vaccines by comparing the Omicron variant with the original COVID-19 virus first detected in China, revealing these results.

In this study, only 3 out of 13 people who received two doses of the Sinopharm vaccine produced neutralizing antibodies against Omicron.

Additionally, among Janssen vaccine recipients, only 1 out of 12 produced neutralizing antibodies, and none of the 11 people fully vaccinated with the Sputnik vaccine generated neutralizing antibodies.

Neutralizing antibodies are antibodies that biologically neutralize the effects of the virus when it invades the body, protecting cells. The level of neutralizing antibody activity is a key indicator for measuring the protective effect of vaccines.

People with prior infection history who have also been vaccinated show less reduction in neutralizing antibodies.

Vaccines such as Moderna, AstraZeneca, and Pfizer retained neutralizing antibody activity against Omicron. However, the antibody response was significantly reduced compared to the response against the original virus detected in China.

The study also found that people who were previously infected and then received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine showed the lowest decline in antibodies.

This study was published as a preprint and requires peer review.

Meanwhile, the Russian Gamaleya Center, which developed the Sputnik vaccine, rebutted the study, stating that the immune serum samples used were not representative and that conclusions about the vaccine’s efficacy against Omicron should not yet be drawn.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.