In a Potentially Troubling Development for Africa, Sinovac Did Not Perform Well in Early Test Against Omicron Variant

A healthcare worker holds up a SINOVAC Covid-19 vaccine before administering it on a minor during the Numolux/SINOVAC Peadiatric Covid-19 Vaccine Clinical Trial at the University in Pretoria, on September 10, 2021. Phill Magakoe / AFP

Researchers at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) found that people inoculated with two doses of Sinovac’s COVID-19 vaccine did not produce sufficient detectable levels of antibodies needed to fend off the new highly-infectious Omicron variant.

A third injection did generate some antibodies but researchers cautioned that it is still too early to tell if the extra booster would be enough to prevent infection.

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by Eric Olander

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