Moderna Inc. stock skyrocketed in the extended session Tuesday after the biotech company said its coronavirus vaccine candidate produced a “robust” immune-system response in a larger group of people and the study will move to a decisive clinical trial in July.
Results published in The New England Journal of Medicine showed that a two-dose vaccination schedule induced the desired immune response in all 45 people evaluated, a larger group than in the preliminary data Moderna MRNA, +4.54% released in May, and was generally safe and well-tolerated, the company said.
Shares of Moderna ended the regular trading day up 4.5%. The company is a front-runner among several developing experimental COVID-19 vaccines.
The results “reaffirm the positive interim data” released back in May, Moderna said. The trial vaccine “induced rapid and strong immune responses against SARS-CoV-2,” the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.
No serious adverse effects were reported, but some that did occur, such as headaches and fatigue, were “generally transient and mild to moderate in severity,” the company said.
Moderna is evaluating whether the participants’ immune responses are lasting, with participants followed for one year.
Source : Marketwatch