China's Suzhou Abogen Biosciences Co has said its Covid-19 vaccine candidate using the messenger RNA (mRNA) technology and targeting the Omicron variant has obtained clinical trial approval in the United Arab Emirates.

With the announcement, Abogen joins Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna in trialling candidates modified specifically against Omicron, a highly transmissible variant with increased resistance to antibodies elicited by existing shots, Reuters reported.

Besides the UAE, Abogen was communicating with regulators in China and other countries on potential clinical trials for the Omicron-specific candidate, it said in a statement.