Moderna

Moderna has announced a revised supply agreement with the UK government for up to 60 million doses of its Covid-19 vaccine, which may include authorised booster vaccine candidates, with up to 29 million doses expected to be delivered in 2022 and up to 31 million doses expected to be delivered in 2023.  The agreement  Under the agreement, the […]

Moderna has announced updates to its strategy to address SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern, given the emergence of the B.1.1.529 (Omicron) variant.   What is Omicron?  The recently described Omicron variant includes mutations seen in the Delta variant that are believed to increase transmissibility and mutations seen in the Beta and Delta variants that are believed to […]

Moderna has announced positive interim data from its Phase II/III study (KidCOVE) of mRNA-1273, the company’s vaccine candidate against Covid-19, in children six to 12 years of age.   This interim analysis showed a robust neutralising antibody response after two doses of mRNA-1273 at the 50µg dose level with a favourable safety profile. Moderna plans to submit this data […]

Health Canada has approved Moderna’s New Drug Submission (NDS-CV) for Spikevax (elasomeran mRNA vaccine), it has granted full approval (Notice of Compliance or NOC) for Pfizer’s Comirnaty, and it has approved the AstraZeneca vaccine, which will be named Vaxzevria.  “Health Canada’s approval of our Covid-19 vaccine is an important milestone as it is our first full approval for Spikevax. I […]

New analysis suggests that the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine is highly effective against circulating variants of concern, including in a vaccine effectiveness study conducted in partnership with Kaiser Permanente Southern California (KPSC) and in a separate recent publication by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).   Additionally, the company shared a new analysis of follow-up through one year in […]

Moderna has submitted a conditional marketing approval (CMA) with the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for the evaluation of a booster dose of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine (mRNA-1273) at the 50 µg dose level.  “We are pleased to submit for a conditional marketing approval with the EMA for our booster candidate at the 50 µg dose level. The amended Phase II study and […]

Moderna has initiated its submission to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the evaluation of a booster dose of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine (mRNA-1273) at the 50 µg dose level. The company expects to submit data to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and other regulatory authorities around the world shortly.  “We are pleased to initiate […]

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has begun a clinical trial to assess the antibody response to an extra dose of an authorised or approved Covid-19 vaccine in people with autoimmune disease who did not respond to an original Covid-19 vaccine regimen.   The trial will also investigate whether pausing immunosuppressive therapy for autoimmune disease improves the antibody […]

News round-up by DDW’s Megan Thomas for 23-27 August  The Covid-19 pandemic has undoubtedly put virology back on the drug discovery map and this week, DDW’s Megan Thomas has rounded up five stories which show updates and advancements in the fight against the virus.   1. Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine maintains antibodies against variants  New data has […]

Japan has suspended the use of around 1.63 million doses of the Moderna vaccine due to contamination, which the health ministry confirmed resulted from “foreign materials” in an unused batch of roughly 560,000 vials, according to BBC reports.   According to the news site, Takeda Pharmaceutical, which sells and distributes the vaccine in Japan, said Moderna had put […]