Johnson & Johnson plans to make a second-generation coronavirus vaccine even as the pharmaceutical giant works to ramp up production of its current one-dose shot, according to reports.
“We are looking at the development of a second-generation vaccine and will leverage our learnings from our current COVID-19 program to accelerate these efforts,” a spokesperson at Janssen, the J&J subsidiary developing the vaccine, told Fox News. “We will continue to do all we can to help bring an end to the pandemic and will share more information as it is available.”
The spokesperson said the company’s phase 3 study demonstrated protection against multiple coronavirus variants, and the company will continue to test the effectiveness of its vaccine against emerging variants while increasing production.
Johnson and Johnson’s authorized single-shot coronavirus vaccine proved 72% effective in preventing mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in the U.S. and was 100% effective in preventing hospitalizations and deaths, the study found. But its effectiveness dropped to 66% in the larger worldwide trial, which included more than 43,000 participants and several coronavirus variants. The shot was 85% effective in preventing severe symptoms across all regions, including South Africa, and no one who was vaccinated in the trial died or landed in the hospital 28 days after administration of the shot.
• Shen Wu Tan can be reached at stan@washingtontimes.com.
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