Moderna isn’t done pushing vaccines.
They know want to make one for the seasonal flu.
JUST IN – Next vaccine: Moderna announces "positive interim phase 1 data" for an #mRNA jab against the regular flu.
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) December 10, 2021
Moderna says that it’s on its way to having an mRNA vaccine against not one, but two different seasonal viruses.
The biotech released the first early data from its flu program Friday morning, announcing that all doses of the shot significantly boosted antibodies in younger and older adults without “significant safety findings.â€
A 500-person Phase II will confirm dose levels and compare it to an approved flu vaccine, the company said, and preparations for a large pivotal trial are underway. Moderna said it is also advancing new designs that can have potentially broader coverage of different flu strains than current shots.
The results are the opening salvo in a four-headed (so far) race to develop the first mRNA flu vaccine, as Moderna tries to edge out BioNTech, Sanofi subsidiary Translate Bio, and CureVac past the gate. Although all four have programs underway, Moderna is the first to announce data.
Those data, though, don’t give a clear answer on whether mRNA can improve on previous technologies. Moderna said the 50 microgram dose of the shot, designed like most flu vaccines to inoculate against four different strains of the virus, increased antibodies against the two Influenza A strains by eight-fold and ten-fold, respectively, and against the two influenza strains by three-fold and two-fold.
The data was underwhelming:
The first data from clinical trials of Moderna’s mRNA-based seasonal flu vaccine, released by the company Friday morning, were underwhelming — a finding that shows gene-based vaccines might not be a fix for all the problems with vaccine development.
The overwhelming success of the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, made by Moderna and Pfizer / BioNTech, supercharged interest in that strategy for developing shots. The shots inject people with tiny snippets of the gene for a virus, which the body builds and then uses to learn how to fight the virus. Current flu shots contain inactivated copies of the influenza virus. mRNA vaccines are faster to design and produce because manufacturers don’t have to grow copies of the virus, which is why experts have for years seen them as the future of vaccines.
Moderna launched a clinical trial of an mRNA seasonal flu vaccine this summer, hoping to capture the same success as it did with its COVID-19 vaccine. Typically, seasonal flu shots are around 40 to 60 percent effective, and pharmaceutical companies want to make that better. Three other companies are also working on mRNA flu shots.
Their stock dropped.
Moderna disclosed what it called positive data on its experimental flu vaccine, but investors seemed to see air leaking out of the company’s dream of a megablockbuster shot that could protect against multiple respiratory viruses.
Moderna stock (ticker: MRNA) was down 9.4% by midmorning. The shares are up 136.2% this year, though they have fallen 36% since the start of October.
The Palmieri Report is a Pro-America News Outlet founded by Jacob Palmieri. The Palmieri Report is dedicated to giving people the truth so that they can form their own informed political opinions. You can help us beat Big Tech by following us on GETTR , Telegram, and Rumble.
