New York: Is there some light finally at the dark and deadly tunnel. In a ray of hope against COVID-19, biotechnology giant Moderna has commenced stage 2 trials for its new vaccine. Moderna aims to enrol 600 participants, up from 45 participants in the phase 1 trials. The increase in the number of participants hints that the stage 1 human trials by and large has been successful.
According to ‘Forbes’, Moderna is looking to start stage 3 trials by July for its vaccine candidate named ‘mRNA-1273’.
Phase 2 trials very crucial
“Phase 2 trials may be viewed as more crucial compared to other phases for a couple of reasons. The phase 1 trials are used to ascertain the safety of a vaccine or treatment in humans. On the other hand Phase 2 trials gauge the effectiveness and also provide more data on how safe it is,” said the report Wednesday.
Historical data also has a point to provide. The probability of success for a drug moving from phase 1 to phase 2 stands at about 63 per cent.
US stocks surged as investors eyed some encouraging news about a potential coronavirus vaccine.
Promising results
Last month, the ‘Moderna’ ‘mRNA’ vaccine showed promising results by generating an immune-system response in the body to fight coronavirus. The
‘mRNA-1273’ is a vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 which was selected by Moderna. It did so in collaboration with investigators from the Vaccine Research Centre (VRC) at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). It is a part of the US National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Garnering maximum attention
Vaccine candidates from the NIH and ‘Moderna Inc’, and the one from the Oxford University, have been getting maximum attention. Across the world over 100 vaccines are currently under various stages of trial.
Shares of ‘Moderna’ jumped nearly 20 per cent after the US company announced positive interim clinical data for a potential coronavirus vaccine. When the announcement was made May 18 as Dow soared over 900 points.
Agencies