New COVID-19 vaccine for fall should target JN.1 lineage, not variant, FDA panel
What specific lineage of COVID-19 has the FDA panel recommended targeting for the new vaccine this fall?
The FDA panel has recommended targeting the JN.1 lineage for the new COVID-19 vaccine this fall. This decision was made because the JN.1 lineage has dominated virus strains and current vaccines built to fight XBB.1.5 do not provide as much protection against JN.1 and several sub-variants driving cases for months. The unanimous vote by the 16-member panel will be used by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to develop vaccines for the next year.
Which vaccine manufacturers have expressed readiness to produce the JN.1-targeted vaccines, and by when do they expect to have them available?
Vaccine manufacturers Pfizer, Moderna, and Novavax have expressed readiness to produce JN.1-targeted vaccines. They expect to have them available in August, pending FDA approval1.
What recent assessment by the World Health Organization influenced the panel's decision on the vaccine's target lineage?
The recent assessment by the World Health Organization that influenced the panel's decision on the vaccine's target lineage was the recommendation that vaccines should use a "monovalent JN.1 lineage" for vaccines. This assessment was based on the fact that the JN.1 lineage has dominated virus strains in recommendations and current vaccines built to fight XBB.1.5 do not provide as much protection against JN.1 and several sub-variants driving cases for months.