Moderna advances multiple vaccine programs to clinical trials

Moderna announced at its fifth Vaccines Day event clinical and program updates demonstrating advancement and acceleration of its mRNA pipeline. The updates include data readouts in the company’s respiratory and latent and other vaccine portfolios, as well as commercial, manufacturing and financial announcements for its vaccines business. The vaccine portfolio seeks to address infectious diseases that Moderna is advancing five vaccine candidates against viruses that cause latent infections, all of which are in clinical trials. When latent, a virus is present in the body but exists in a resting state, typically without causing any noticeable symptoms. Latent viruses can reactivate and cause clinical symptoms as a person ages, during times of stress or when immunity is compromised. The capacity for latency is a dening feature of members of the Herpesviridae family, including cytomegalovirus, or CMV, Epstein-Barr virus, or EBV, herpes simplex virus, or HSV, and Varicella-Zoster virus, or VZV, cause considerable health burdens and includes 28 vaccines addressing respiratory, latent and other pathogens.