Vaccine strategy against COVID-19 with a focus on the Omicron and stealth Omicron variants: Life Cycle Committee Recommendations

Abstract

The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the cause of the pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), was first discovered in December 2019 in Wuhan, China, and was consequently transmitted across the world. Further, within a year of its initial discovery, vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 were developed using diverse techniques comprising mRNA-, adenoviral vector-, and recombinant DNA-technology. Researchers have assessed these vaccines in large, placebo-controlled trials and determined them to be both safe and efficient. However, there are several distinct vaccines for SARS-CoV-2 and its variants comprising Alpha, Delta Omicron, and stealth Omicron. Omicron vaccines are available to the public with reasonable safety and scientifically acceptable levels of protective effectiveness for COVID-19. Of clinical significance, it is demanding in clinical practice to precisely interpret the efficiency and the persistence of the distinct vaccines ascribed to the notion that there are no gold methods to assess neutralization levels. In this guideline, our aim is to review vaccine strategies against COVID-19 and its variants for adults, children and adolescents, and pregnant or lactating women.