"The only way to handle these variants is booster shots in the autumn".
Professor Luke O'Neill has said that annual Covid-19 vaccine booster shots will be the "only way" to deal with new Covid-19 variants such as Delta.
Speaking on
The Pat Kenny Show on Thursday, the Professor of Biochemistry at Trinity College Dublin said that the way to "handle these variants" would be booster shots to "really kick off the immune system".
“The only way to handle these variants is booster shots in the autumn, that will really kick off the immune system to protect against multiple variants," he said.
“The way out of this variant issue is extensive vaccination now of course, but then also booster shots with any of the vaccines.”
O'Neill was also asked if the Johnson & Johnson one-shot vaccine is effective against the Delta variant.
He said that there isn't enough field data yet, as the Johnson & Johnson vaccine hasn't been used as widely in the UK, where the Delta variant is at its highest, compared to other jabs.
However, he said that scientists are “confident” it does protect people from hospitalisation and more severe forms of the disease.
He said: “That’s the key metric, it doesn’t matter if you get infected really, as long as it doesn’t progress into severe disease.
“There’s evidence in the lab. They’ve taken blood from people who had Johnson & Johnson and then tested the antibodies. It is able to neutralise Delta.
“It is lessened, all the vaccines are slightly weakened in that regard. But still, Johnson & Johnson is driving an immune response in people that should protect against Delta.”
