Oct 9 (Reuters) - The European Commission authorized

Novavax's ( NVAX ) updated COVID-19 vaccine targeting the JN.1

strain of coronavirus in the region, the company said on

Wednesday.

The authorization is for use in individuals 12 years of age

and older.

In August, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted

emergency use authorization for Novavax's ( NVAX ) shot after approving

vaccines made by Pfizer ( PFE ) and Moderna ( MRNA ).

Novavax's ( NVAX ) traditional protein-based shot offers an

alternative vaccine technology to those that are based on

messenger RNA - Moderna's ( MRNA ) Spikevax and Comirnaty, which is

jointly developed by Pfizer ( PFE ) and BioNTech.

The updated vaccine targets the "parent strain" of currently

circulating variants, and has shown robust cross-reactivity

against JN.1 lineage viruses, including KP.2.3 and KP.3

subvariants, said Novavax ( NVAX ) CEO John Jacobs.