Study: AstraZeneca Vaccine Booster Works Against Omicron

People pose with syringe with needle in front of displayed AstraZeneca logo in this illustration taken, December 11, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
People pose with syringe with needle in front of displayed AstraZeneca logo in this illustration taken, December 11, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
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Study: AstraZeneca Vaccine Booster Works Against Omicron

People pose with syringe with needle in front of displayed AstraZeneca logo in this illustration taken, December 11, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
People pose with syringe with needle in front of displayed AstraZeneca logo in this illustration taken, December 11, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

A three-dose course of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine is effective against the rapidly-spreading Omicron coronavirus variant, the pharmaceutical company said on Thursday, citing data from an Oxford University lab.

Findings from the study, yet to be published in a peer-reviewed medical journal, match those from rivals Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna which have also found a third dose of their shots works against Omicron, Reuters reported.

The study on AstraZeneca's vaccine, Vaxzevria, showed that after a three-dose course of the vaccine, neutralizing levels against Omicron were broadly similar to those against the virus's Delta variant after two doses.

The London-listed company said researchers at Oxford University who carried out the study were independent from those who worked on the vaccine with AstraZeneca.

"As we better understand Omicron, we believe we will find that T-cell response provides durable protection against severe disease and hospitalizations," Mene Pangalos, the head of AstraZeneca's biopharmaceuticals R&D said, referring to a critical component of the immune system that respond to fight infection.

Antibody levels against Omicron after the booster shot were higher than antibodies in people who had been infected with and recovered naturally from COVID-19, the Anglo-Swedish drugmaker added.

Although the early data is positive for the company, AstraZeneca said on Tuesday it was working with its partner Oxford University to produce a vaccine tailored for Omicron, joining similar efforts from other vaccine-makers.

The Oxford study analyzed blood samples from those infected with COVID-19, those vaccinated with two doses and a booster, and those previously infected with other variants of concern. It included samples from 41 people given three doses of Vaxzevria.

Scientists and governments are scrambling to bolster defenses against Omicron with shots and therapies, as the variant threatens to become dominant globally and has prompted renewed curbs ahead of the holidays to contain infections.

Britain earlier this month backed the use of boosters after it found that a third dose significantly restored protection against mild disease caused by Omicron, in part reversing an otherwise steep drop in vaccine effectiveness.



Texas Flood Toll Rises to 24 as Rescuers Search for Missing Children

Members of Task Force 1 deploy boats along the Guadalupe River in the wake of a destructive flooding event in Kerrville on Friday July 4, 2025. (Christopher Lee/The San Antonio Express-News via AP)
Members of Task Force 1 deploy boats along the Guadalupe River in the wake of a destructive flooding event in Kerrville on Friday July 4, 2025. (Christopher Lee/The San Antonio Express-News via AP)
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Texas Flood Toll Rises to 24 as Rescuers Search for Missing Children

Members of Task Force 1 deploy boats along the Guadalupe River in the wake of a destructive flooding event in Kerrville on Friday July 4, 2025. (Christopher Lee/The San Antonio Express-News via AP)
Members of Task Force 1 deploy boats along the Guadalupe River in the wake of a destructive flooding event in Kerrville on Friday July 4, 2025. (Christopher Lee/The San Antonio Express-News via AP)

Rescuers were desperately searching for at least 20 girls missing from a riverside summer camp, officials said Friday, after torrential rains caused a "catastrophic" flash flood that killed at least 24 people as it swept through south-central Texas.

"At this point we're at about 24 fatalities," Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha told an evening press conference as rescue teams scrambled to locate stranded residents in the region northwest of San Antonio, reported AFP.

Some of the dead were children, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said at a previous news conference.

The county sheriff said there were "kids that are still missing", adding that between 23 and 25 people were unaccounted for.

Lieutenant Governor Patrick previously said "about 23" girls attending a summer camp in the flooded Kerr County were missing.

They were part of a group of around 750 children at Camp Mystic, a girls summer camp along the banks of the Guadalupe River which rose 26 feet (eight meters) in 45 minutes with heavy rainfall overnight.

"That does not mean they've been lost, they could be in a tree, they could be out of communication," he said.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott said he was signing a "disaster declaration" to boost resources in counties in the region.

"It's terrible, the floods," US President Donald Trump told reporters Friday night. "It's shocking."

Asked if Texas would receive federal aid, he said: "Oh yeah, sure, we'll take care of it. We're working with the governor."

- Rescue efforts -

A massive rescue operation was underway in the region, with around 500 personnel and 14 helicopters helping in the search for survivors.

Texas military official Major General Thomas Suelzer told reporters at least 237 people had been rescued or evacuated by emergency personnel, with 167 rescues performed using helicopters.

Freeman Martin, director of the state's public safety department, told the evening conference: "We had a hard time getting in this morning with the weather the way it was."

"As the day went on, it picked up and we were able to rescue more and recover more, that will continue tomorrow," Martin said, calling the disaster a "mass casualty event."

US media reported that trucks had arrived at Camp Mystic to transport stranded people.

State and local officials warned against residents traveling to the area which includes camp grounds dotted along the river, with dozens of roads "impassable."

Videos on social media showed houses and trees swept away by the flash flood caused by heavy overnight rain of up to 12 inches -- one-third of Kerr County's average annual rainfall.

Governor Abbott shared a video on X of a victim being plucked from the top of a tree by a rescuer dangling from a helicopter, as floodwaters raged below.

"Air rescue missions like this are being done around the clock. We will not stop until everyone is accounted for," he said.

The Texas National Guard sent rescue teams and the US Coast Guard joined efforts as well.

- 'Another wave' -

Public safety official Martin warned of "another wave" that could impact other counties in the state, adding that "this is not going to end today".

Kerr County officials have repeatedly said they were unaware of an impending flood overnight from Thursday to Friday.

"We didn't know this flood was coming," Kerr County judge Rob Kelly said earlier on Friday, adding that the region has "floods all the time."

"This is the most dangerous river valley in the United States," he added, referring to the Guadalupe River.

Soila Reyna, 55, a Kerrville resident who works at a local church helping people who lost their belongings, witnessed the devastation unfold.

"It has been years since we had a flood, but nothing like this," Reyna said.

"Nothing like as catastrophic as this, where it involved children, people and just the loss of people's houses and you know, it's just crazy," she added.

Forecasters issued a flood warning for Kerr County, urging those living near the river to "move to higher ground."

Flash floods, which occur when the ground is unable to absorb torrential rainfall, are not unusual.

But scientists say in recent years human-driven climate change has made extreme weather events like floods, droughts and heatwaves more frequent and intense.

In mid-June, at least 10 people were killed by flash flooding in San Antonio following torrential rains.

In the northeastern state of New Jersey, at least two people were killed when a tree fell on their vehicle during a "severe storm," local police confirmed on Friday.