A lower level of antibodies against the Omicron virus variant is triggered by COVID-19 vaccines, researchers said in a new study.
Using blood samples from people who received two doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine or the Pfizer-BioNTech jab, researchers with the University of Oxford found “a substantial fall” in neutralizing antibodies, with evidence of some people failing to have any.
“This will likely lead to increased breakthrough infections in previously infected or double vaccinated individuals, which could drive a further wave of infection,” the authors wrote in the preprint study.
Levels of antibodies are the primary measure of protection against infection.
Emerging data indicate that Omicron is more transmissible than earlier strains but that it does not cause more severe disease. The balance of the data out so far indicate it actually causes more mild cases on average than Delta, the dominant strain in the United States.
Coronavirus Exposed 