Top in ID: COVID-19 booster shots, future applications of mRNA technology

In a recent article, experts discussed whether people may need booster doses of the messenger RNA vaccines to combat variants and prolong protection against wild-type SARS-CoV-2. It was the top story in infectious disease last week.

Another top story examined how past successes in vaccine research and billions of dollars in public funds led to the development of messenger RNA (mRNA) COVID-19 vaccines in record time, and what this could mean for vaccines against other diseases.

Read these and more top stories in infectious disease below:

Will we need COVID-19 booster shots?

Data suggest that the mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna provide protection from infection for at least 6 months. Recent comments made by the heads of two of those companies raised questions about whether people may need booster doses of the vaccines. Read more.

Past research and ‘unlimited resources’ spur fast development of COVID-19 vaccines

When scientists began working on solutions for the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, it seemed unlikely that a safe and effective vaccine would be available in a year, according to Paul A. Offit, MD. Yet, by mid-December, the FDA had authorized two mRNA vaccines developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna for emergency use after researchers found they were more than 90% efficacious in late-stage trials — data now backed up by real-world evidence. Read more.

COVID-19 outbreak at skilled nursing facility linked to unvaccinated worker

Researchers identified an unvaccinated, symptomatic health care worker as the index patient in a COVID-19 outbreak at a skilled nursing facility in Kentucky that totaled 46 cases, many of them among fully vaccinated residents and staff. Read more.

Rollout lacks message that COVID-19 vaccination ‘will change your life’

In a recent Infectious Diseases Society of America press briefing, Amesh A. Adalja, MD, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, said most vaccine hesitancy is a result of misinformation. Read more.

European regulators recommend adding blood clot warning to J&J vaccine

European regulators said that a warning about unusual blood clots with low blood platelets should be added to information about the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine but also that the benefits of the vaccine outweigh the risks. Read more.