AZ Begins Production of 'Omicron Vaccine'... Enables Rapid Response to New Variants

Pfizer, Moderna, and Novavax Also Begin Vaccine Development

Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] The University of Oxford in the UK and AstraZeneca (AZ) have jointly begun producing a vaccine targeting the new coronavirus (COVID-19) variant, 'Omicron.'

According to a report by the Financial Times (FT) on the 21st (local time), Dr. Sandy Douglas from the Oxford research group stated in an interview with FT that "preliminary steps have been taken to produce the latest vaccine in collaboration with AstraZeneca."

He explained, "Adenovirus-based vaccines can theoretically respond to new variants faster than people think."

Earlier, American pharmaceutical companies Pfizer, Moderna, and Novavax also started developing vaccines targeting Omicron, aiming for production early next year. Unlike Pfizer and Moderna's messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines, AZ's Omicron vaccine is made using a chimpanzee adenovirus as a deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) delivery vector.

Meanwhile, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), the Omicron COVID-19 variant has currently spread to 106 countries worldwide. WHO emphasized, "Recent evidence shows that the Omicron variant is superior to the Delta variant, with higher community transmission and rapid spread even in countries with high levels of immune populations."

They added, "Because the number of infections is increasing rapidly, healthcare systems may collapse. Preliminary data indicate that neutralizing antibodies against Omicron are at low levels in people who have completed basic vaccination and those previously infected, suggesting immune evasion of humoral immunity."

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