What New Jersey Should Know About Delta Variant Vaccinations

NEW JERSEY — Many people still have questions about the different vaccines on the market that challenge COVID-19, especially with the variant strains emerging.

Below, readers will find information from each of the major manufacturers that have developed vaccines for emergency use. Read what each says about coverage against COVID-19 and variants of the virus, including Delta variant.

Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine

Johnson & Johnson’s single-shot vaccine, according to a sub-study from the New England Journal of Medicine, provided eight months of antibody response against COVID-19, including variants like Delta.

That study evaluated 25 participants between the ages of 18 and 55, five getting the placebo, 10 getting one shot and 10 receiving two shots eight weeks apart. There were immune responses on day 239 of all given the vaccine, Johnson & Johnson reported. Dr. Dan Barouch of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and his team interpreted the study data, the company reporting that B-cells, which at maturity created antibodies, did so without a booster.

A joint study from the Departments of Microbiology and Medicine and NYU Langone Vaccine Center - all affiliated with the NYU Grossman School of Medicine - reported, “While a single dose vaccination has advantages, the benefit provided by a second immunization may be well worth the inconvenience,” suggesting a booster may help.

However, the need is not necessarily evident for a booster, those who did the study wrote in their report, to fight “variants of concern” or VOCs like Delta and the Lambda variant, suggesting it best to “focus on primary immunization in the U.S. and globally.”

Johnson & Johnson is considering a two-dose vaccine program to challenge the Delta variant.

Moderna’s Two-Dose COVID-19 Vaccine

Moderna, one of the two-shot vaccine types, announced that its vaccine series “produced neutralizing titers against all variants tested,” naming Delta, Beta, Kappa, Eta and others, according to their study.

Their study of eight serum samples taken a week following the participants’ second doses in the Phase 1 clinical trial of Moderna’s vaccine, claims to have developed “neutralization assays against additional variant strains.”

“Moderna is pursuing a clinical development strategy against emerging variants to proactively address the pandemic as the virus continues to evolve,” the company reported.

The group from NYU also studied the effectiveness of Moderna in fighting Delta, studied up to 80 days after the second shot, stated that the “mRNA vaccine-elicited antibodies neutralized the variants with a modest 3-fold average decrease in titer,” because of its two doses.

A joint study among several partners in Canada, testing three vaccines including Moderna’s, claim even one dose of one of the vaccines they studied, “provide good to excellent protection against symptomatic infection and severe outcomes caused by the four currently circulating variants of concern.” Their study concluded even one dose of Moderna’s vaccine provided up to 70 percent variant protection.

The CDC, however, has a special notation on its page for Moderna’s vaccine, about “increased reports of myocarditis and pericarditis in adolescents and young adults after COVID-19 vaccination,” when commenting on vaccine safety.

“The known and potential benefits of COVID-19 vaccination outweigh the known and potential risk of myocarditis or pericarditis,” the CDC also wrote, recommending vaccination for “anyone 12 years of age or older.”

Pfizer's Suggests Booster For Delta After Two-Dose Vaccine

Pfizer recently advocated that a booster dose after its two-shot vaccine program, could help challenge Delta, which they are discussing with regulatory agencies, the company reported. Their study, that they presented when sharing their second quarter 2021 earnings, presented studies that the third dose “strongly boosts neutralization titers against Delta strain.”

A study from the United Kingdom that included the Pfizer vaccine suggested that two doses of the Pfizer vaccine fought Delta and “would support maximizing vaccine uptake with two doses among vulnerable groups,” with 93.4 percent effectiveness.

Like Moderna, the study team from NYU evaluated Pfizer’s two-dose plan, rating it higher in effectiveness against Delta than a one-dose shot.

The CDC has additionally placed a notice on Pfizer’s page about reports that have come in for teens and young adults, about myocarditis and pericarditis after vaccination for COVID-19.

Questions or comments about this story? Have a news tip? Contact me at: jennifer.miller@patch.com.