Bivalent Omicron BA.4/BA.5 BNT162b2 Vaccine in 6-Month- to <12-Year-Olds

Background: With the future epidemiology and evolution of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) uncertain, the use of safe and effective coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines in pediatric populations remains important.

Methods: We report data from two open-label substudies of an ongoing phase 1/2/3 master study (NCT05543616) investigating the safety and immunogenicity of a variant-adapted bivalent COVID-19 vaccine encoding ancestral and Omicron BA.4/BA.5 spike proteins (bivalent BNT162b2). The open-label groups presented here evaluate dose 4 with bivalent BNT162b2 in 6-month- to <12-year-olds who previously received three original (monovalent) BNT162b2 doses. In 6-month- to <5-year-olds, primary immunogenicity objectives were to demonstrate superiority (neutralizing titer) and noninferiority (seroresponse rate) to Omicron BA.4/BA.5 and noninferiority (neutralizing titer and seroresponse rate) to SARS-CoV-2 ancestral strains in participants who received bivalent BNT162b2 dose 4 compared with a matched group who received three doses of original BNT162b2 in the pivotal pediatric study (NCT04816643). In 5- to <12-year-olds, primary immunogenicity comparisons were descriptive. Reactogenicity and safety following vaccination were evaluated.

Results: In 6-month- to <5-year-olds, dose 4 with bivalent BNT162b2 met predefined immunogenicity superiority and noninferiority criteria against Omicron BA.4/BA.5 and ancestral strains when compared with dose 3 of original BNT162b2. In 5- to <12-year-olds, bivalent BNT162b2 induced robust Omicron BA.4/BA.5 and ancestral strain neutralizing titers comparable with dose 3 of original BNT162b2. The safety profile for dose 4 of bivalent BNT162b2 given as dose 4 was consistent with that of original BNT162b2 in 6-month- to <12-year-olds. Reactogenicity events were generally mild to moderate. No adverse events led to discontinuation.

Conclusions: These safety and immunogenicity data support a favorable benefit-risk profile for a variant-adapted BNT162b2 in children <12 years old.