Fourth Covid booster enhances antibodies five-fold: Israeli study

Amid rising cases of Omicron, a preliminary study by Israeli researchers has shown that the fourth dose of Covid-19 vaccine boosts antibodies five-fold in just a week after the shot is administered, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said on Tuesday.

Bennett spoke during a visit to the Sheba Medical Center, where Israel launched a trial of a second booster early last week, the Jerusalem Post reported.

Israel has become the first country to roll out the fourth dose of the Covid-19 vaccine to health workers and people aged 60 years old and those with weakened immune systems.

According to Bennett, the initial results show the fourth dose is as safe as the third dose.

The increase in antibodies after a fourth dose indicates “a very high likelihood that the fourth dose will protect vaccinated people to a great degree, against infection to some degree and against severe symptoms”, Bennett was quoted as saying.

Israel registered over 10,000 new coronavirus cases on Monday, the Health Ministry announced Tuesday, a figure previously reached only at the peak of the third wave in January 2021 and of the fourth wave in September.