MUST study shows mRNA booster produces more antibodies against Omicron variants
A study from the Macau University of Science and Technology (MUST) has found that people taking the BioNTech mRNA vaccine as the third booster dose produces more neutralizing antibodies against Omicron variants.
The study, published in Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy (Impact Factor: 35.13), is led by Dr. Daniel Baptista-Hon, Assistant Professor at MUST’s Faculty of Medicine, and Professor Ligong Lu, director of Zhuhai People’s Hospital and The First Affiliated Hospital of Faculty of Medicine of MUST.
The researchers found that in people who have received two doses of the inactivated virus vaccine, those who receive the BioNTech mRNA vaccine as a booster produce more of the neutralizing antibodies that are effective against the Omicron BA.2 variant.
“The results of our study show that the choice of the booster shot is very important, and the data in our study is in line with the recommendations of the Health Bureau of the Macau SAR Government that people should consider the mRNA vaccine as their booster dose”, says Dr. Baptista-Hon.
This publication is part of the ongoing Macau Antibody Protection Study (MAPS), initiated since February 2022. It is a multidisciplinary collaboration between the Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital of MUST, Zhuhai People’s Hospital and First Affiliated Hospital of Faculty of Medicine of MUST, Guangzhou Medical University, and Fosun Pharmaceuticals.
MAPS is led by Chair Professor Kang Zhang and Dr. Baptista-Hon, with the overall aim of evaluating the effectiveness of vaccine protection in Macau.
MAPS is recruiting participants from the Macau population who have taken one, two or three of the currently available vaccines in Macau or mainland China. The recruitment is currently paused to comply with the SAR’s anti-pandemic measures.
Chair Professor Zhang says, “MAPS (the Macau Antibody Protection Study) is a very important study to keep track of the level of protection against Covid-19 in Macau, which can also help guide vaccination strategies.
“We are always looking for new participants so if anyone is interested, they can get in touch with us,” he added.
Health authorities and medical experts have reiterated that vaccination is one of the most important ways to reduce infection and death from the virus as vaccination stimulates bodies to produce antibodies against SARS-CoV-2.
Some of these antibodies are “neutralizing” – they prevent SARS-CoV-2 from infecting cells altogether and stop people from falling ill.
Macau’s total vaccination rate currently sits at 90.5%.
