Pfizer Says Third COVID Shot Protects against Omicron

Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech said early lab tests show the booster increased levels of virus-fighting antibodies by “25-fold.”

輝瑞及其德國合作夥伴BioNTech表示，早期實驗室測試顯示，追加劑使對抗病毒的抗體濃度提高了「25倍」。

The Pfizer research is early and has not been independently examined.

輝瑞的研究仍處於早期階段，也未經過獨立審查。

But, Bourla said, “it's clear from these preliminary data that protection is improved with a third dose of our vaccine.”

但博爾拉表示：「從這些初步數據可以清楚看出，接種第三劑我們的疫苗能提高保護力。」

The company also said it has started to develop a COVID-19 vaccine against Omicron.

該公司還表示，已開始研發針對Omicron的新冠疫苗。

If needed, the new vaccine will be ready by March 2022.

如有需要，新疫苗將在2022年3月前準備就緒。

The findings are similar to a small study published by researchers at the Africa Health Research Institute in South Africa on Tuesday.

這些發現與南非非洲衛生研究所的研究人員週二發表的一項小型研究結果相似。

However, Reuters reported that a study at the University Hospital of Frankfurt, Germany, found reduced antibody levels against Omicron even after three shots.

然而，路透社報導，德國法蘭克福大學醫院的一項研究發現，即使打了三劑，針對Omicron的抗體濃度也有所下降。

Independent experts have not reviewed the studies.

獨立專家尚未審查這些研究。

Health officials still do not know how big of a threat Omicron really is.

衛生官員仍然不知道Omicron的威脅到底有多大。

The Delta variant is still responsible for most of the cases, especially in the United States.

Delta變異株仍是大多數病例的主因，尤其是在美國。

The agency said Omicron “has a large number of mutations, some of which are concerning.”

該機構表示，Omicron「有大量突變，其中一些令人擔憂」。

A mutation is a change in the genetic material of a virus.

突變是指病毒遺傳物質發生的變化。

The WHO added that early evidence suggests “an increased risk of reinfection with this variant, as compared to other VOCs.”

世衛組織補充說，早期證據顯示，「與其他高關注變異株相比，這種變異株的再感染風險增加」。

Several countries, including the United States, Brazil, Japan, and Israel, restricted travelers from some African countries.

包括美國、巴西、日本和以色列在內的幾個國家限制了來自部分非洲國家的旅客入境。

But the variants have since been identified throughout Europe, North America and Australia.

但此後，這些變異株已在歐洲、北美和澳洲各地被發現。