Johnson & Johnson vaccine, efficacy and protection on with second dose

The effectiveness of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine increases by a considerable percentage with the second dose. The recall of the J&J vaccine “generated a 9-fold increase in antibodies compared to 28 days after the first dose,” Johnson & Johnson points out in a statement. The data comes from two Phase 2 studies conducted in the United States and Europe of 2,000 participants in anticipation of the potential need for a booster. The data were presented in pre-publication in ‘medRxiv’. In July, the company released interim data, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, which showed a stable immune response for eight months after immunization. “We know that a single dose of our vaccine generates strong and robust immune responses that are durable and persistent for eight months – underlined Mathai Mammen, Head of Research and Development at Janseen – With these new data we are seeing that a booster dose of the vaccine to study participants, who were previously immunized with our vaccine, further increases antibody responses. “J&J is in dialogue with the FDA, CDC and EMA on the need to offer a booster dose of the Janssen vaccine. “We look forward to discussing the potential strategy for our single-dose vaccine with public health officials, considering a booster eight months after the first dose.”