Covid-19 vaccine shows promising results in old patients: Moderna

Immune response in elderly similar to that seen in younger participants, says firm

Moderna on Wednesday said that an analysis of the early-stage data of its experimental Covid-19 vaccine showed that it induced immune responses in older adults that were similar to younger participants.

The drug developer is one of the leading US contenders in the race to develop a safe and effective vaccine against the novel coronavirus and its candidate, mRNA-1273, is already in the Phase 3 stage of human testing.

Moderna is now reporting interim data from the Phase 1 study, which includes new analysis from 20 additional people and details on how the vaccine performs in older people.

The analysis looked at 100 microgram dosage that has been selected for the larger Phase 3 trial. Moderna said the immune responses in those aged between 56 and 70 years, above 70 and those in the age-group of 18 and 55 were similar.

The data is being presented at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices meeting on Wednesday.

Moderna, which has no drugs in the market, has received nearly $1 billion from the US government under a plan to speed up vaccine development for Covid-19. It has also struck a $1.5-billion supply agreement with the United States.

The trial used a dose of the vaccine that has advanced to a final-stage trial. The dose produced antibody levels higher than those typically seen in people recovering from the virus, Moderna said.

Shares of the drug developer, which rose 1 per cent to $67, have more than tripled in value so far this year and results from its studies have lifted the broader market.

While the vaccine is associated with a variety of side effects, including chills, fatigue, fever, headache and muscle pain, there were no serious adverse events in the 100-microgram dose that’s being used in the final-stage trial, according to a copy of Moderna’s slide presentation from the meeting.

The company earlier published data from the same trial showing that the vaccine produced neutralising antibodies against the coronavirus in younger adults. Triggering neutralising antibodies in older patients is important as they are some of the most severely affected by Covid-19.