Moderna has unveiled new study data on the effectiveness of its Covid-19 vaccine in generating neutralising antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern.

In the study published in ‘Science’ magazine, the majority of people vaccinated with Moderna’s vaccine maintained both binding and functional antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 variants.

The vaccine generated immune responses against the variants of concern, including Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon and Iota variants, for six months after the second dose.

According to the study, antibody levels were declined in few people over time, however, the majority of participants had neutralising antibody titers at six months after the primary series.

The trend of decline in antibody levels against SARS-CoV-2 spike variants was observed in the oldest individuals, and there was overlap between age groups.

The data complement effectiveness of Moderna Covid-19 vaccine amid rising levels of the Delta variant of concern, in the populations which are harder to treat, said the company.

Moderna chief executive officer Stéphane Bancel said: “We are pleased with these new data showing that people vaccinated with two doses of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine maintained antibodies through six months, including against variants of concern such as the Delta variant.

“Along with our partners, we are committed to generating data on the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine and sharing this as available. These data support the durable efficacy of 93% seen with the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine through six months.

“We expect that these data and the growing body of real-world evidence will help inform health regulators’ approaches to how and when to administer additional boosting doses.”

The Moderna Covid-19 Vaccine is an mRNA vaccine against Covid-19 encoding for a prefusion stabilised form of the spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

In December last year, Moderna Covid-19 Vaccine has received emergency use authorisation from the US FDA for immunisation of individuals aged 18 years and above.

The vaccine has received emergency authorisation for use in adults, in more than 50 countries and an Emergency Use Listing (EUL) from the World Health Organization (WHO).

Moderna has received funding from Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) to support the continued research and development of the Covid-19 vaccine.

Recently, the company signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the government of Canada to build a new manufacturing facility in Canada.