FDA recommends Covid vaccine update to target KP.2 strain
The FDA advised drugmakers to update Covid vaccines to target the KP.2 strain, a descendant of the highly contagious JN.1 variant that spread widely in the U.S. this winter.
The Food and Drug Administration said Thursday it had advised drugmakers to update the Covid vaccines to target the KP.2 strain, a descendant of the highly contagious JN.1 variant that began circulating widely in the U.S. this winter.
The announcement came just over a week after an FDA advisory panel voted unanimously to recommend that the Covid vaccines for the fall be updated to target the JN.1 variant or one of its descendants.
Following the vote, there was a disagreement between panel members and Dr. Peter Marks, the agency’s top vaccine regulator, about which strain the agency should choose. Most panel members expressed a preference for JN.1, while Marks preferred selecting a newer strain, such as KP.2.
"We are paying an incredibly high premium for mRNA vaccines to be able to have the freshest vaccines," Marks said, comparing the shots to buying milk from the store.
Following the committee meeting, the FDA said that on June 6 it initially advised the drugmakers to target the JN.1 variant. However, the agency has continued to monitor the circulating strains, and "based on the most current available data, along with the recent rise in Covid-19 cases in areas of the country, the agency has further determined that the preferred JN.1-lineage" for the updated vaccines is the KP.2 strain, "if feasible," the FDA said.
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