FDA advisers recommend updating COVID-19 vaccines to target emerging omicron subvariants for fall vaccinations.
Key recommendation: The FDA panel suggests moving from a “bivalent” vaccine to a “monovalent” vaccine that only targets omicron subvariants.
* The current COVID shot targets both the original strain of the coronavirus and omicron subvariants dominant last winter.
* The new monovalent vaccine formulation aims to be more effective against the XBB strains.
* Majority of new infections in the U.S. are caused by the XBB.1.5 strain currently.
The reasoning: FDA scientists noted that data from vaccine manufacturers show the updated monovalent vaccine elicits stronger neutralizing antibody responses against XBB strains than current bivalent vaccines.
* This recommendation is in anticipation of a potential increase in cases this fall.
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