Curevac abandons Covid shot after disappointing trial results

CureVac NV is abandoning its first-generation Covid-19 vaccine to focus on another shot it’s developing together with GlaxoSmithKline Plc.
 

European regulatory authorities had indicated the vaccine probably wouldn’t be approved before the second quarter of next year, the Tuebingen, Germany-based biotech said on Tuesday. By then, CureVac and Glaxo expect to be conducting late-stage patient trials of a second-generation shot, the company said. The company’s advanced purchase agreement with the European Commission will be a cancelled as a result. 

CureVac’s first-generation Covid vaccine delivered disappointing trial results earlier this year. The shot was 48% effective at preventing disease of any severity -- well behind the more than 90% rates shown by messenger RNA shots from Pfizer Inc.-BioNTech SE and Moderna Inc. 

Like those shots, CureVac’s also relies on mRNA, a technology that essentially enlists the body’s own cells to produce vaccine material. The shot is slightly different from that of competitors, however, because it uses an unmodified form of mRNA. 

The Glaxo project uses a more refined version of the CureVac technology, with lab test results that the company has said indicate a higher level of efficacy. The partners plan to start recruiting patients for a trial of that shot by the end of this year, with potential approval in 2022. 

The shares fell as much as 12% in premarket U.S. trading.