The Food and Drug Administration has provided updated guidance to COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers, asking them to formulate a shot that better targets the newest strains of the virus. The new image will be available this fall.
The FDA said Thursday that COVID-19 vaccines by fall 2024 are expected to target the KP. 2 variant of the virus, which is a descendant of the JN. 1 variant that circulated widely in the U. S. During the winter. In the past, a shot targeting only the JN. 1 variant rather than new strains of the virus has been recommended.
As of June 8, the KP. 2 variant accounted for about 22. 5% of COVID-19 infections, while the JN. 1 strain accounted for 3. 1%. KP. 3, a descendant of the JN. 1 variant, accounted for about 25% of cases. Both KP. 2 and KP. 3 have removed older variants of the virus in recent months.
“This update aims to make COVID-19 vaccines (2024-2025 formula) better adapted to circulating SARS-CoV-2 strains,” the FDA said. “The FDA has communicated this update to legal and legal COVID-19 brands. “Vaccines. The company does not anticipate that an update to KP. 2 will delay the availability of vaccines for the United States. “
KP. 2 and KP. 3 are known as FLiRT variants because of their positions in the spike protein.
Andy Pekosz, a professor of molecular microbiology and immunology at Johns Hopkins University, said in a question-and-answer consultation in May 2024 that those variants are no more or less severe than previous variants, but that more people have antibodies thanks to vaccines. and the infection passed to a greater fight. an infection.
According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 22% of adults in the U. S. U. S. citizens received a COVID-19 vaccine for the 2023-24 season.
Anyone five years of age and older should receive an up-to-date COVID-19 vaccine to protect against severe illness, the CDC recommends.
In recent years, updated COVID-19 vaccines are typically available in early fall.