Health

AstraZeneca vaccine booster shot effective against Omicron: Oxford lab study

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

The study, yet to be published in a peer-reviewed medical journal, showed antibody levels against imicron after the booster shot were higher than antibodies in people who had been infected with and recovered naturally from COVID-19.

For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.

After a three-dose course of the vaccine, neutralizing levels against omicron were similar to those against the virus’s delta variant after two doses, the company added.

The Anglo-Swedish drugmaker said researchers at Oxford University who carried out the study were independent from those who worked on the vaccine, Vaxzevria, with AstraZeneca.

Pfizer pill becomes first US-authorized home COVID-19 treatment

No country can boost its way out of pandemic: WHO chief

Health

UN agencies warn of rising hunger risk in 18 ‘hotspots’

Hunger is set to worsen in 18 “hotspots” worldwide including Sudan, where fighting is putting people at risk of starvation, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) warned in a report published on Monday.

Health

International Day of UN Peacekeepers honours 75 years of service and sacrifice

Since 1948, more than two million uniformed and civilian personnel have served at UN field missions across the world. Their contributions are being highlighted on the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers, observed on Monday.

Health

Menstrual Hygiene Day: Putting an end to period poverty

Fatoumatta Fatty’s commute on an old, malfunctioning wheelchair takes up to two hours during rainy season in The Gambia, but she is happy joining her co-workers at a sanitary pad production centre, where she takes pride in making products that help women overcome “period poverty” across the country.