Way forward to adapt COVID-19 vaccines to emerging variants assessed by global regulators

Given the emerging evidence on coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 variants and lessons learned from previous vaccine updates, international regulators have published a  report highlighting the outcomes of their discussions on COVID-19 vaccines and the need for and strategy to update their composition.

The workshop, co-chaired by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), was organized under the umbrella of the International Coalition of Medicines Regulatory Authorities (ICMRA).

The report shows that currently authorized vaccines continue to be effective at preventing hospitalization, severe disease and death due to COVID-19. However, protection against infection wanes over time and as new SARS-CoV-2 variants emerge. Preliminary data show that COVID-19 vaccines adapted to the currently circulating strains improve immunity to recently emerged variants, such as XBB descendent lineages.