The world's first influenza mRNA vaccine has entered Phase III trials

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The world’s first influenza mRNA vaccine has entered Phase III clinical trials

In addition to the COVID-19 vaccine, Moderna has invested the most in the field of influenza, and the world’s first influenza mRNA vaccine has entered Phase III clinical trials

Although influenza is very common, the difficulty of developing influenza vaccines is also recognized, mainly because the influenza virus has been mutating, and the effectiveness of influenza vaccines on the market is generally not high.

Recently, Moderna’s seasonal influenza vaccine candidate mRNA-1010 has entered Phase 3 clinical trials. It is one of Moderna’s most advanced vaccine candidates outside of the COVID-19 vaccine and one of four flu vaccines the company is developing.

In addition to mRNA 1010, Moderna has also developed a multi-antigen, multivalent, compound efficacy vaccine designed to provide vaccine protection for possible future epidemics.

So, what are the advantages of the mRNA R&D platform for developing influenza vaccines? Why is Moderna so fast?
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What are the advantages of mRNA flu vaccine?

Moderna has been brilliant in the development of vaccines. Since the successful development of the COVID-19 vaccine, it has stepped up efforts to develop mRNA vaccines in many fields.

Influenza mRNA vaccine is one of the important areas of its layout.

The world's first influenza mRNA vaccine has entered Phase III clinical trials

More recently, a Phase 3 trial of Moderna’s flu vaccine, mRNA-1010, will enroll some 6,000 adults in the southern hemisphere.

If it is finally launched, it will be the world’s first mRNA influenza vaccine . Let us wait and see whether the mRNA vaccine can shine in the field of influenza.

This randomized, double-blind trial was designed to evaluate the safety and immunological non-inferiority of the mRNA-1010 vaccine against an existing licensed seasonal influenza vaccine in adults 18 years of age and older.

The patients were randomly assigned to receive a single dose of mRNA-1010 or a single dose of the marketed seasonal influenza vaccine at a ratio of 1:1, and the indicators of the two were used as comparison objects.

So, what are the advantages of the Moderna mRNA flu vaccine? mRNA-1010 is an influenza vaccine candidate encoding the hemagglutinin (HA) glycoprotein of four influenza strains recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) for protection against influenza, including influenza A (H1N1), influenza A (H3N2) and influenza B /Yamagata and B/Victoria lines (HA is a major influenza surface glycoprotein and is considered an important target for conferring broad influenza protection and is the main target of currently available influenza vaccines) .

The world's first influenza mRNA vaccine has entered Phase III clinical trials Moderna has a very rich pipeline of influenza vaccine development

It is worth mentioning that the company has five other mRNA influenza vaccine candidates, at least two of which are in clinical phase 1, and the others are still in the preclinical development process, which will be briefly summarized below:

For one, mRNA-1011 and mRNA-1012 include additional HA antigens for broader coverage of circulating influenza A strains, and these two vaccine candidates are in preclinical studies.
Second, mRNA-1020 and mRNA-1030 include HA and neuraminidase (NA) antigens (thus targeting multiple proteins in the influenza virus life cycle, reducing the possibility of viral antigen escape), and Moderna is expected to Entering a Phase 1/2 trial in early 2022.
At the same time, Moderna is also developing a combined vaccine against Covid-19 and influenza (mRNA-1073), as well as another combined vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) (mRNA-1230).

Moderna much involved in the flu treatment

Although the severity of seasonal influenza varies from year to year, according to WHO surveys, there are at least 5 million severe cases of influenza and at least 290,000 respiratory deaths worldwide each year.

The world's first influenza mRNA vaccine has entered Phase III clinical trials

mRNA vaccines are making their mark in many disease areas

In addition, the effectiveness of existing influenza vaccines is only 30% or even lower, and most of them are developed through chicken embryos. The antigens in the vaccine may change, affecting the effect of vaccination.

The world's first influenza mRNA vaccine has entered Phase III clinical trials Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel

mRNA-1010 is Moderna’s fourth mRNA vaccine candidate. Phase 3 trials begin with COVID-19 booster, RSV and CMV vaccines. According to Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel, a pipeline of advanced vaccine candidates could be released in the next two to three years.

“mRNA-1010 is one of several influenza vaccine candidates we are developing to iteratively improve traditional vaccines by inducing a broad and robust immune response.

We believe our mRNA platform leverages the flexibility of the mRNA manufacturing process performance and speed, well positioned to address significant unmet needs in seasonal influenza,

Bancel also said, ” Influenza vaccines are a key pillar of our respiratory vaccine strategy, which includes the development of combination vaccine candidates against multiple viruses in a single vaccine, including influenza with SARS-CoV-2 and respiratory syncytial virus. “

references
1. https://www.biopharma-reporter.com/Article/2022/06/07/moderna-takes-mrna-influenza-candidate-into-phase-3-trial
2. https://geneonline.news/mrna-flu-vaccine-moderna/

The world’s first influenza mRNA vaccine has entered Phase III clinical trials

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