Pharmaceuticals

Scientists are studying how well COVID-19 vaccines work against the delta variant of SARS-CoV-2. We discuss the latest findings. The delta variant of SARS-CoV-2, which was first identified in India, is now the dominant form of the virus in the United Kingdom. In the United States, at least 10% of new cases are with this variant.

"I want to wait and watch." This is a peculiar response I receive from my friends and some family members in the United States when I ask them about their thoughts on COVID-19 vaccination. This is a peculiar response for a couple of reasons: COVID-19 vaccines are exceptionally effective, are now readily available and are the best way to end the pandemic and return to normalcy.

Your next dose of the COVID vaccine, a booster shot that will protect citizens against rapidly spreading variants like the Delta strain, could be needed as soon as this fall. The Delta variant, which is expected to become the dominate virus mutation in the U.S. by August, will require previously vaccinated Americans to receive a booster shot, according to Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Both the AstraZeneca and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines maintained effectiveness against the Delta variant in a recent study, with researchers noting "no evidence of widespread complete escape from neutralization." The study, of which a pre-proof appeared in Cell, said it would "seem likely from these results" that the vaccines would provide protection against the B.1.617 variant, "though an increase in breakthrough infections may occur as a result of the reduced neutralizing capacity of sera."

Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, was given the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for her second dose after receiving Oxford-AstraZeneca’s shot in April, according to reports. The BBC, citing a government spokesman, reported on Tuesday that Merkel received the Moderna jab in recent days. Millions of doses of AstraZeneca have been safely administered in Europe, but concerns linger over a rare type of blood clot seen in an extremely small number of recipients.