VOA慢速英语2021 莫德纳称早期检测表明其疫苗对抗奥密克戎效果良好（在线收听）

American drugmaker Moderna said Monday that a third dose of its COVID-19 vaccine should protect against the Omicron version of the new coronavirus.

美国制药商莫德纳公司周一表示，其新冠疫苗的第三针可以预防奥密克戎版本的新冠病毒。

Moderna said laboratory tests showed its half-dose booster shot increased the level of antibodies able to fight Omicron by 37 times. A full-dose booster had an even stronger effect. The company said it gave 83 times the antibody levels. Half-dose shots are being used for most Moderna boosters. But a full-dose third shot has been advised for people with weakened immune systems.

莫德纳公司表示，实验室检测表明，其半剂量的加强针将能够对抗奥密克戎的抗体水平提高了37倍。全剂量加强针的效果甚至更强。该公司称其能提供83倍的抗体水平。大多数莫德纳加强针都使用半剂量注射。但是对于免疫系统较弱人群，建议注射全剂量的第三针。

Moderna's early results have not yet been carefully examined by other scientists. But testing by the U.S. National Institutes of Health found a similar increase in antibody levels.

莫德纳的早期结果尚未经过其他科学家的仔细研究。但是美国国立卫生研究院的检测发现抗体水平出现了类似增长。

Another American company, Pfizer, said testing found its COVID-19 vaccine led to a big increase in Omicron-fighting antibodies. Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech said this month that early lab tests showed its full-strength booster increased levels of antibodies by "25-fold."

另一家美国公司辉瑞制药表示，检测发现其新冠疫苗导致对抗奥密克戎的抗体大幅增加。辉瑞及其德国合作伙伴生物新科技公司本月表示，早期实验室检测表明，其全剂量加强针将抗体水平提高了25倍。

The vaccines made by Pfizer and by Moderna are both made with messenger RNA technology. The shots are used by many countries around the world to fight the pandemic. Health officials are advising people to get booster injections as soon as possible.

辉瑞和莫德纳公司生产的疫苗都采用了信使核糖核酸技术。这种疫苗被全球许多国家用来抗击这次大流行。卫生官员建议人们尽快注射加强针。

Antibody levels predict how well a vaccine may prevent infection with the coronavirus. However, they are just one part of the immune system's defenses. Other research suggests the vaccine should offer good protection against severe disease. This should be the case even if a fully vaccinated person gets what is known as a breakthrough infection.

抗体水平可以预测疫苗预防新冠病毒感染的效果。然而，它们只是免疫系统防御的一部分。其它研究表明，疫苗应该对重症提供良好的保护。即使完全接种疫苗人士感染了所谓的突破性感染，情况也应该如此。

Both Moderna and Pfizer are developing shots to better deal with the Omicron variant in case they are needed. Pfizer also recently said its experimental pill to treat COVID-19 appears to work well against the Omicron version.

莫德纳和辉瑞公司都在开发疫苗以便在需要时更好地应对奥密克戎变种。辉瑞公司最近还表示，其治疗新冠肺炎的实验性药丸似乎对奥密克戎变种效果很好。

Omicron was first found in southern Africa on November 9 and reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) on November 24. Two days later, the WHO designated it a variant of concern.

奥密克戎最初于11月9日在非洲南部发现，并于11月24日向世卫组织报告。两天之后，世卫组织将其定为关切变种。