‘BioNTech booster gives good protection from Omicron’

A study conducted by two medical schools in Hong Kong has shown that a booster of the BioNTech vaccine can offer sufficient protection against the Omicron variant.

Researchers at the University of Hong Kong and Chinese University said on Thursday that according to their findings, a two-dose regimen of either the Sinovac or the BioNTech vaccine “provide very poor virus killing antibody responses against Omicron”.

But they said a BioNTech booster can provide protective levels of antibodies against Omicron, regardless of which vaccine they took previously.

They also said a booster of the Sinovac shot does not provide adequate levels of antibodies for those who received two previous doses of the Sinovac jab.

Professor David Hui, one of the Chinese University researchers, urged eligible people to get their two jabs as soon as possible if they haven’t.

“The transmissibility of Omicron variant means that if the virus started spreading in Hong Kong, unvaccinated people who are [at] highest risk of severe disease – older age or underlying diseases such as diabetes and hypertension, will rapidly [be] at high risk,” he said.

Meanwhile, Professor Malik Peiris from HKU urged those who have been double-jabbed to get a BioNTech booster around six months after their second jab to achieve optimal protection against the Omicron variant.