Vaccines create significant value for healthcare systems by preventing infectious disease; despite this, the vast majority of viruses do not have commercial vaccines available, representing a large opportunity
Moderna has demonstrated neutralizing immunogenicity against all eight viruses targeted in clinical trials to date using the Company’s innovative vaccine platform
First interim analysis of Phase 1 Zika vaccine candidate (mRNA-1893) study shows that 10 µg and 30 µg dose levels seroconverted 94% and 100% of seronegative participants, respectively, and effectively boosted seropositive participants; both dose levels generally well-tolerated
NIH-led Phase 1 study of mRNA-1273, Moderna’s vaccine candidate against the novel coronavirus, continues on track with enrollment of participants at the highest dose
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.-- Moderna, Inc. (Nasdaq: MRNA), a clinical stage biotechnology company pioneering messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines to create a new generation of transformative medicines for patients, today is hosting its first Vaccines Day, including presentations highlighting the potential advantages of mRNA vaccines. The Company is also announcing new positive interim Phase 1 data from its Zika vaccine candidate (mRNA-1893). With this data, Moderna’s prophylactic vaccines modality now has seven positive Phase 1 readouts, including a combination vaccine against two viruses (hMPV and PIV3; mRNA-1653). The Company has demonstrated neutralizing immunogenicity against all eight viruses targeted to date in its clinical trials. Based on the totality of this clinical experience, earlier this year the Company designated prophylactic vaccines a core modality and is working to accelerate the development of its vaccine pipeline.
The vast majority of human viruses do not have a commercially available vaccine in the United States. This gap includes many long-known viruses, such as cytomegalovirus (CMV) (discovered in 1956), Zika (1962) and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV, 1964), but also includes many emerging novel viruses. Since 1980, an average of two novel viruses that infect humans have been discovered each year. Examples of these novel viruses include HIV 1 (discovered in 1983), Hepatitis C (1989), H1N1 (2009), and SARS-CoV-2 (2019). Moderna’s vaccine pipeline has been studied in ten clinical trials to date with more than 1,400 participants. Clinical data demonstrate that Moderna’s proprietary vaccine technology has been generally well-tolerated and can elicit durable immune responses to viral antigens. The Company also believes that it has demonstrated the ability to leverage shared technology, digital systems and a flexible manufacturing infrastructure to advance a large portfolio quickly and efficiently.
“We believe that our seven innovative first-in-class mRNA vaccine candidates provide a strong foundation for Moderna and offer a high probability of success when compared to other technologies. In the last several decades, 80 new pathogens have emerged, yet the vast majority of these viruses lack an approved vaccine in the U.S. We believe that vaccines offer a large total addressable market and an opportunity to reduce healthcare costs with a benefit to society through the prevention of devastating illnesses in areas of unmet need,” said Stéphane Bancel, Moderna’s Chief Executive Officer. “The totality of data from our vaccines platform gives us reason to be optimistic about the prospects for our vaccines to come, including our vaccine against the novel coronavirus.”
In an analysis published in Biostatistics in April 2019, Dr. Andrew Lo, et al. studied the probability of clinical trial success rates and related parameters of more than 185,000 clinical trials involving 21,000 compounds. This robust analysis compared infectious disease vaccines to other therapeutic areas and found that infectious disease vaccines have an overall 33% probability of success that increases to a 42% probability of success once a Phase 2 study is launched, the highest of all therapeutic areas.
“It’s critical for clinical researchers and biopharma investors to evaluate the probability of success when making scientific and economic decisions,” said Andrew Lo, Ph.D., Director of MIT’s Laboratory for Financial Engineering. “After analyzing more than 185,000 clinical trials involving 21,000 compounds, we found that infectious disease vaccines have the highest probability of clinical success.”
Interim Phase 1 Data for Zika Virus Vaccine (mRNA-1893)
All four cohorts (10 µg, 30 µg, 100 µg, 250 µg) of the Phase 1 study of mRNA-1893 have been dosed. An interim analysis of the study reports safety and immunogenicity data from the 10 µg and 30 µg cohorts. Neutralizing antibody titers were assessed using Plaque Reduction Neutralization Test (PRNT50) and microneutralization assays (MN), which provide equivalent guidance for interpreting the neutralizing immune response.
Following a two-dose vaccination schedule of mRNA-1893 given 28 days apart, the 10 µg and 30 µg dose levels were both generally well-tolerated, and there were no vaccine-related serious adverse events (SAEs) or adverse events of special interest (AESI). The most frequent solicited adverse reaction was local pain at the injection site. The safety profile did not appear affected by the second vaccination nor a flavivirus-positive baseline serostatus.
The analysis also showed that the 10 µg and 30 µg dose levels induced a neutralizing antibody response in both flavivirus infection-naïve (seronegative) participants and in participants with pre-existing flavivirus antibodies (seropositive), as shown by geometric mean titers and seroconversion rates. Notably, a single vaccination of the 30 µg dose level was sufficient to convert baseline flavivirus seronegative participants. However, there was a clear benefit of a two-dose series given 28 days apart.
In the flavivirus-seronegative group:
- Seroconversion rates after the second vaccination reached 94.4% in the 10 µg dose level and 100% in the 30 µg dose level, based on the PRNT50. MN data were consistent with PRNT50 data.
In the flavivirus-seropositive group:
- The percentage of participants achieving a 4-fold boost in pre-existing PRNT50 titers after the second vaccination reached 50% in the 10 µg dose level and 75% in the 30 µg dose level, based on the PRNT50. MN data were consistent with PRNT50 data.
“I am encouraged by these interim Phase 1 data showing the ability of mRNA-1893 to elicit a strong neutralizing antibody response,” said Tal Zaks, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Medical Officer at Moderna. “Our Zika program, along with our continued work on a vaccine candidate against the novel coronavirus, underscore our commitment to improving global public health through developing mRNA vaccines to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.”
This project has been funded in whole or in part with Federal funds from the Department of Health and Human Services; Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response; Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, under Contract No. HHSO100201600029C. It was granted Fast Track designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in August 2019. Moderna owns worldwide commercial rights to mRNA-1893.
About Moderna’s Prophylactic Vaccines Modality
Moderna scientists designed the Company’s prophylactic vaccines modality to prevent infectious diseases. More than 1,400 participants have been enrolled in Moderna’s infectious disease vaccine clinical studies under health authorities in the U.S., Europe and Australia. Based on clinical experience across seven Phase 1 studies, the Company has designated prophylactic vaccines a core modality and is working to accelerate the development of its vaccine pipeline.
Moderna currently has nine development candidates in its prophylactic vaccines modality, including:
Vaccines against respiratory infections
- Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine for older adults (mRNA-1777 and mRNA-1172 or V172 with Merck)
- RSV vaccine for young children (mRNA-1345)
- Human metapneumovirus (hMPV) and parainfluenza virus type 3 (PIV3) combination vaccine (mRNA-1653)
- Novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) vaccine (mRNA-1273)
- Influenza H7N9 (mRNA-1851)
Vaccines against infections transmitted from mother to baby
- Cytomegalovirus (CMV) vaccine (mRNA-1647)
- Zika vaccine (mRNA-1893 with BARDA)
Vaccines against highly prevalent viral infections
- Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) vaccine (mRNA-1189)
To date, Moderna has demonstrated positive Phase 1 data readouts for seven prophylactic vaccine candidates (H10N8, H7N9, RSV, chikungunya virus, hMPV/PIV3, CMV and Zika). Moderna’s CMV vaccine candidate is currently in a Phase 2 dose-confirmation study.
Virtual Vaccines Day
Moderna will host a virtual Vaccines Day today, Tuesday April 14th,beginning at 8:00 a.m. ET. A live webcast will be available under “Events and Presentations” in the Investors section of the Moderna website at investors.modernatx.com. A replay of the webcast will be archived on Moderna’s website for one year following the presentation.
