New York: US-based biotechnology company Moderna said that its COVID-19 vaccine appeared safe and worked well with older adults during new trials.
The second interim analysis of the open-label Phase 1 study of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine mRNA-1273 was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
This interim analysis evaluated a two-dose vaccination schedule of mRNA-1273 given 28 days apart in 40 healthy adult participants across two dose levels (25 and 100 microgram) in two age cohorts (ages 56-70 and ages 71+), and reports results through Day 57 (1 month after the second dose). This analysis found that both the 25 microgram and 100 microgram dose levels were generally well-tolerated in both age cohorts.
Immune responses were dose-dependent with the 100 µg dose eliciting higher binding and neutralizing antibody titers, supporting the selection of the 100 µg dose for further study in the Phase 3 trial. The study was led by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
“These interim Phase 1 data suggests that mRNA-1273, our vaccine candidate for the prevention of COVID-19, can generate neutralizing antibodies in older and elderly adults at levels comparable to those in younger adults,” said Tal Zaks, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Medical Officer of Moderna.
“Given the increased morbidity and mortality of COVID-19 in older and elderly adults, these data give us optimism in demonstrating mRNA-1273’s protection in this population, which is being evaluated in the Phase 3 COVE study.”
Both the 25 µg and 100 µg dose levels of mRNA-1273 were generally well-tolerated, with no serious adverse events reported through Day 57.
The most common solicited adverse events were headache, fatigue, myalgia, chills, and pain at the injection site, the majority of which were mild-to-moderate in severity and of self-limited duration, Moderna said in a statement.
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