Britain today became the first country to approve a covid vaccine that targets both the disease caused by the original coronavirus and the newer Omicron variant, Reuters reported.

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The British drug regulator has approved the use of the so-called bivalent vaccine, produced by the American pharmaceutical company Moderna, as a booster dose for adults.

An adapted COVID vaccine is expected to be available in May

The decision was based on data from clinical trials showing that the booster dose elicited a "strong immune response" against the Omicron variant (BA.1) as well as against the original 2020 variant of the virus.

The regulatory body also refers to the results of a research analysis, according to which the vaccine creates a good immune response against the currently dominant sub-variants of Omicron BA.4 and BA.5, adds BTA.

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