Dr. Eric Topol appeared on Tuesday's episode of "Mad Money," discussing the latest on the Covid omicron variant. Sign up and learn more about the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer [ Ссылка ]
Dr. Eric Topol told CNBC’s Jim Cramer on Tuesday he believes existing Covid vaccines will offer adequate protection against serve disease for people who get infected by the newly detected omicron variant.
In an interview on “Mad Money,” the individualized medicine expert also stressed the importance of receiving a Covid booster shot, imploring eligible Americans to get the additional vaccine dose.
“There’s lots of reasons for optimism that this is not some horrible situation that we’re in. The vaccines should hold up against severe disease, especially with people who are boosted,” said Topol, founder and director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute.
There’s yet to be a confirmed case in the U.S. of the highly mutated coronavirus variant that was first detected by health officials in South Africa about a week ago. However, some health experts warn it’s just a matter of time before that happens given international travel patterns.
Given the number of spike protein mutations associated with the omicron variant, Topol said, “The main agenda here is, how much does it really evade our immune system?”
“We are so certain when you get a booster third shot, you get really high levels of neutralizing antibodies and you get broader coverage of those antibodies,” Topol said.
“The other thing is T cells. T cells are what’s really protecting us from severe disease, from Covid pneumonia,” he continued. Antibodies and T cells are both part of the immune system’s response to fight infections.
“Our T cells are very insensitive, not affected by variants, to any significant degree,” Topol said. “If you just look at the biology, you would be optimistic, really,” he added.
» Subscribe to CNBC TV: [ Ссылка ]
» Subscribe to CNBC: [ Ссылка ]
» Subscribe to CNBC Classic: [ Ссылка ]
Turn to CNBC TV for the latest stock market news and analysis. From market futures to live price updates CNBC is the leader in business news worldwide.
The News with Shepard Smith is CNBC’s daily news podcast providing deep, non-partisan coverage and perspective on the day’s most important stories. Available to listen by 8:30pm ET / 5:30pm PT daily beginning September 30: [ Ссылка ]
Connect with CNBC News Online
Get the latest news: [ Ссылка ]
Follow CNBC on LinkedIn: [ Ссылка ]
Follow CNBC News on Facebook: [ Ссылка ]
Follow CNBC News on Twitter: [ Ссылка ]
Follow CNBC News on Instagram: [ Ссылка ]
[ Ссылка ]
#CNBC
#CNBCTV
