Moderna announced it has entered the final phase of clinical trials for the development of four new vaccines targeting latent infections. Among them are vaccines for chickenpox and herpes, as well as norovirus, which is responsible for gastroenteritis outbreaks.
The four vaccines for latent infections target diseases caused by viruses in the herpesvirus family: cytomegalovirus (the infection causing the most birth defects in the United States), Epstein-Barr virus (the leading cause of infectious mononucleosis), herpes simplex virus, and varicella-zoster virus (responsible for chickenpox).
Additionally, the pharmaceutical company is in the final phase of developing a vaccine against norovirus, which causes gastroenteritis outbreaks worldwide and around 200,000 deaths annually.
Moderna also took advantage of its fifth Vaccine Day to announce a next-generation vaccine against COVID-19, effective against both the omicron BA.4 and BA.5 variants and the original SARS-CoV-2 strains.
This new generation of COVID-19 vaccine has enabled the company to develop a candidate vaccine against both the flu and COVID-19 for people over 50.
The company estimates the global market for endemic COVID-19 at $10 billion annually.
“COVID-19 remains a high-burden disease, and while hospitalizations due to COVID-19 continue to be high compared to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and the flu, the risks of long COVID are beginning to be better understood,” the company stated in a press release.
Regarding RSV, which primarily affects children and can cause long-term complications, Moderna noted that its vaccine candidate is in phase 2/3 clinical trials involving 37,000 participants over 60 years old across 22 countries.
Moderna expects the vaccine to be approved by U.S. authorities in 2024.
Currently, Moderna’s only commercial vaccine is for COVID-19, which uses mRNA technology—the same platform for all the vaccines the company is developing. EFE
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