monovalent

adjective

mono·​va·​lent ˌmä-nə-ˈvā-lənt 

1

: having a valence of one

2

: having specific immunologic activity against a single antigen, microorganism, or disease

a monovalent vaccine

Examples of monovalent in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In June, an advisory committee to the FDA recommended that this fall’s booster be a monovalent vaccine—targeting only the then-dominant XBB.1.5 subvariant. —Emily Mullin, WIRED, 12 Sep. 2023

In June, the FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee unanimously voted that the fall 2023 COVID booster should be a monovalent vaccine that targets the XBB.1.5 strain of the Omicron variant. —Maggie Scales, BostonGlobe.com, 22 Aug. 2023

And a monovalent vaccine could provide better protection against current variants: With the bivalent booster, patients’s immune systems react more to the original strain, hindering their response to newer ones, David Ho, a microbiologist and immunologist at Columbia University, tells CNN. —Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 June 2023

Remainder of Vaccinated Population - Most people depending on age who were previously vaccinated with a monovalent jab and who haven’t yet received a bivalent vaccine can now get a single bivalent dose, the FDA said. —Travis Andersen, BostonGlobe.com, 18 Apr. 2023

Word History

Etymology

International Scientific Vocabulary

First Known Use

1871, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Medical Definition

monovalent

adjective

mono·​va·​lent ˌmän-ə-ˈvā-lənt 

1

: having a chemical valence of one

2

: containing antibodies specific for or antigens of a single strain of a microorganism

a monovalent vaccine