Moderna "Developing Variant Booster Shot... Shows Significant Efficacy in Preclinical Trials"

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Chunhee Lee] Messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccine developer Moderna announced that it is developing additional vaccines for COVID-19 vaccine booster shots. Instead of merely administering additional doses of the existing vaccine, they are developing separate vaccines to respond to variant viruses.

Randall Hyer, Executive Vice President of Global Medical at Moderna, stated in a pre-recorded video lecture at the '2021 Global Bio Conference' held on the 14th at the Grand Intercontinental Seoul Parnas Hotel in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, "We are developing three different booster shot strategies to respond to variants."

He warned that COVID-19 variants could lower neutralizing antibody levels, increasing the risk of immune evasion and potentially accelerating infections. He emphasized the need for vaccine updates to respond to variants, as this could increase the burden on healthcare systems and risk their collapse.

Hyer explained that Moderna is currently pursuing three types of booster shot strategies. "The first is to re-administer our existing vaccine (mRNA-1273), the second is to administer mRNA-1273.351, developed specifically for the Beta variant, and the third is the 'multi-booster,' which combines the existing vaccine and mRNA-1273.351 into mRNA-1273.211," he said.

Randall Hayyer, Executive Vice President of Moderna Global Medical Affairs, is explaining Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine booster shot strategy through a recorded video lecture at the '2021 Global Bio Conference' held on the 14th. Photo by Chunhee Lee spring@

He also disclosed preclinical research results related to this. According to the data, both the third dose of the existing vaccine and the Beta variant-specific vaccine showed significant efficacy. Neutralizing antibody titers increased against the early variant (D614G), Beta variant (B.1.351), and Gamma variant (P.1) compared to before the third dose. Regarding safety, he explained, "Direct comparison is difficult, but it is similar to the existing vaccine and at a reassuring level."

Hyer said, "mRNA vaccines are truly game changers," and added, "We are collaborating with various partners such as Lonza, Thermo Fisher, Catalent, Rovi, and Aldevron." Samsung Biologics, which is scheduled to carry out the drug product (DP) process for Moderna's vaccine, was not mentioned.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.