New study suggests J&J recipients should get booster shot to protect against Delta variant


Recipients of the one-shot Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine may need to get a second dose to protect against the Delta and Lambda coronavirus variants because its less effective against them, a new study suggests, per The New York Times.
"The message that we wanted to give was not that people shouldn't get the J&J vaccine, but we hope that in the future, it will be boosted with either one dose of J&J or a booster with [the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines]," Nathaniel Landau, a virologist at New York University's Grossman School of Medicine who led the study, told the Times.
The study, which has not been peer reviewed, involvded Landau and his team looking at blood samples taken from 17 people who had received both doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines and 10 people with one dose of J&J. The J&J vaccine started out with a lower efficacy rate, which dropped more sharply against the variants, the Times reports. However, because the study was based on lab experiements, the Food and Drug Administration is unlikely to change its single-dose recommendation because of it, the Times notes. Further, seperate small studies published by researchers affialiated with J&J found that the vaccine's protection strengthened over time. Read more at The New York Times.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
Youth revolts rattle Morocco as calls against corruption grow louder
THE EXPLAINER Snowballing controversy over World Cup construction and civic services has become a serious threat to Morocco’s political stability
-
Israel intercepts 2nd Gaza aid flotilla in a week
Speed Read The Israeli military intercepted a flotilla of nine boats with 145 activists aboard along with medical and food aid
-
Gold tops $4K per ounce, signaling financial unease
Speed Read Investors are worried about President Donald Trump’s trade war
-
FDA OKs generic abortion pill, riling the right
Speed Read The drug in question is a generic version of mifepristone, used to carry out two-thirds of US abortions
-
The new Stratus Covid strain – and why it’s on the rise
The Explainer ‘No evidence’ new variant is more dangerous or that vaccines won’t work against it, say UK health experts
-
RFK Jr. vaccine panel advises restricting MMRV shot
Speed Read The committee voted to restrict access to a childhood vaccine against chickenpox
-
Texas declares end to measles outbreak
Speed Read The vaccine-preventable disease is still spreading in neighboring states, Mexico and Canada
-
RFK Jr. shuts down mRNA vaccine funding at agency
Speed Read The decision canceled or modified 22 projects, primarily for work on vaccines and therapeutics for respiratory viruses
-
Measles cases surge to 33-year high
Speed Read The infection was declared eliminated from the US in 2000 but has seen a resurgence amid vaccine hesitancy
-
Kennedy's vaccine panel signals skepticism, change
Speed Read RFK Jr.'s new vaccine advisory board intends to make changes to the decades-old US immunization system
-
Kennedy ousts entire CDC vaccine advisory panel
speed read Health Secretary RFK Jr. is a longtime anti-vaccine activist who has criticized the panel of experts