I believe that we will launch our CMV vaccine. In a Phase 2 study, Sanofi’s CMV gB vaccine prevented 50 percent of infections in adult women, as published in 2009 in theNew EnglandJournal of Medicine. Our mRNA vaccine encodes forbothgB and the pentamer and we believe our Phase 1 study has shown unprecedented immunogenicity. We will run the Phase 3 study to see how much better we might do on efficacy, whether 70 percent or 95 percent or something different. We believe our efficacy will be better than 50 percent, and as a consequence, that we will launch mRNA-1647 given there is currently no approved vaccine and there are thousands of children around the world who could be protected against CMV each year.
Therefore, we are entering 2020 focused on executing on our Phase 2 and getting ready for our Phase 3 study. To prepare for the start of a Phase 3 trial in 2021, we have already begun manufacturing the required materials needed to supply sites when we are ready to dose study participants.
Protecting against Zika virus transmission, particularly in women during pregnancy, continues to be an area of high unmet need as well. OurZika vaccine (mRNA-1893)is part of Moderna’s broader commitment to improving global public health through developing mRNA vaccines to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.
The Phase 1 study of mRNA-1893 is ongoing and is being advanced with funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS); the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response; and the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA).
Both Zika virus and CMV put women of childbearing age at risk for infection. From an awareness and commercial perspective, this means we have an opportunity to educate people on the unmet need and boost awareness of mRNA-based vaccines in our target market and with the same group of healthcare providers.
Preventing common and serious respiratory infections: RSV and hMPV+PIV3
Respiratory infections are a significant cause of illness for people of all ages. At Moderna, we are focused on respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), human metapneumovirus (hMPV) and parainfluenza type 3 virus (PIV3). Each year, RSV leads to hundreds of thousands of hospitalizations in older adults. RSV, hMPV and PIV3 are also common causes of acute respiratory disease in infants and young children. Annually, in the US alone, millions of children under five years of age receive medical attention for these infections and tens of thousands are hospitalized (3, 1.2 and 0.5 per 1,000 for RSV, hMPV and PIV3, respectively).
Addressing major causes of respiratory infections is a key component of Moderna’s infectious disease strategy. These infections share many of the same features, often causing upper and lower respiratory tract illness, characterized by wheezing, bronchiolitis and pneumonia, and are associated with a substantial burden of hospitalizations and outpatient visits among children throughout the first five years of life.
Despite the need, there are currently no approved vaccines for RSV, hMPV or PIV3. We are working with Merck to advance a vaccine to prevent RSV and are developing a wholly owned hMPV+PIV3 combination vaccine.
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