Moderna's Late-Stage Coronavirus Vaccine Study Hits 78% Enrollment

Moderna Inc MRNA, which is one of the three companies outside of China to have moved its coronavirus vaccine candidates into late-stage trials, is close to completing targeted enrollment into the study. 

What Happened: As of Friday, Moderna said it has enrolled 23,497 participants — or roughly 78% of the targeted number of 30,000 — into the Phase 3 study dubbed COVE, which is evaluating its mRNA-1273 against the novel coronavirus.

The company further said about 27% of the participants enrolled in the study are from diverse communities.

"Working together with collaborators, the company hopes to achieve a shared goal that the participants in the COVE Study are representative of the communities at highest risk for COVID-19 and of our diverse society," Moderna said.

The pace of week-over-week additions has slowed.

After adding 4,264 participants as of Aug. 28, Moderna added another 3,953 participants as of Sept. 4. The week-over-week addition was 2,086 as of Sept. 11.

Benzinga is covering every angle of how the coronavirus affects the financial world. For daily updates, sign up for our coronavirus newsletter.

Why It's Important: The frontrunners are locked in a neck-to-neck race to expeditiously bring a vaccine to the market.

Even as Moderna saw a slowdown in enrollment, Pfizer Inc. PFE and BioNTech SE – ADR BNTX announced last weekend that they are planning to increase enrollment into their Phase 2 study from 30,000 to 44,000 participants, given the prospect of completing the original enrollment target next week.

The expansion would increase population diversity in the study, including participants as young as 16 and some at-risk sub-populations, such as HIV-positive individuals, the companies said.

The interim readout from the Phase 3 trials is likely to include only those already enrolled, as they would be receiving the second booster dose after four weeks, just in time to be included in the interim efficacy data.

MRNA Price Action: Moderna shares were trading 5.35% higher at $62.52 at last check Monday. 

Related Links:

Moderna's Patent Filings, Applications Under Defense Department Review: Report

The Week Ahead In Biotech: Decision Day For Bausch Health, IPO Flow Resumes, Oncology Conference