Gritstone announces update to comparative Phase 2b COVID-19 trial

Gritstone bio announced that it is now preparing to launch the Phase 2b head-to-head trial of its next-generation COVID-19 vaccine in the Fall of 2024 rather than 1Q24. This is to allow use of fully GMP-grade raw materials in the vaccine, which is expected to increase the regulatory utility of the trial. “After recent communication with the FDA and input from our colleagues at BARDA, we are now making the necessary preparations to begin the Phase 2b study later this year using fully GMP-grade materials in the manufacture of our self-amplifying mRNA vaccine,” said Andrew Allen, MD, PhD, Co-founder President & CEO of Gritstone bio. “The change likely increases the regulatory value of this large study, is expected to improve study interpretability, and may enable us to contemporaneously address the latest seasonal variant. We would like to thank the FDA for their collaboration and BARDA for their teamwork in support of this study, which aims to help deliver to the world a broader and more durable vaccine against COVID-19.”