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S Korea's homegrown vaccine proven effective against Omicron subvariants as booster shot

02 Sep 2022 04:40pm
SKYCovione is allowed to be administered as one of the two main inoculations. - Photo: International Vaccine Institute
SKYCovione is allowed to be administered as one of the two main inoculations. - Photo: International Vaccine Institute
SEOUL - SKYCovione, South Korea's first homegrown COVID-19 vaccine developed by SK Bioscience Co., has been proven to be effective against Omicron subvariants when administered as a booster shot, a state-run research centre said Friday.

The Centre for Infectious Disease Research (CIDR) said it has confirmed through research SKYCovione's efficacy in neutralising the BA.1 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants when used after two previous primary vaccine jabs, Yonhap news agency reported.

Currently, SKYCovione is allowed to be administered as one of the two main inoculations. Authorities could potentially allow it to be used as a booster shot based on the results.

When inoculated with SKYCovione as a booster shot, the virus neutralising effect in subjects was 51.9 times higher against the BA.1 subvariant and 28.2 times higher against the BA.5 subvariant, the centre said.

Head of the CIDR, Kwon Joon-wook, said the centre "verified the possibility in using domestically developed vaccines as booster shots."
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SKYCovione is a recombinant-protein vaccine based on novel two-component nanoparticles that can maximise the immune effect. It was jointly developed with the Institute for Protein Design at the University of Washington. - BERNAMA

South Korea
Covid 19
Vaccine
Omicron
subvariant
booster
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