Moderna's mRNA-1769 Mpox Vaccine Shows Promising Results in Animal Study Amid Africa Outbreaks

Sep 4, 2024, 03:24 PM

Moderna has reported encouraging results from an animal study on its experimental mRNA mpox vaccine, mRNA-1769. The study, conducted on non-human primates, demonstrated that the Moderna vaccine provided stronger protection compared to the existing Jynneos vaccine. Unvaccinated animals developed up to 1,448 lesions, while those vaccinated with Jynneos had a maximum of 607 lesions, and those immunized with Moderna's mRNA vaccine had a maximum of 54 lesions. The vaccine candidate contains mRNA molecules that code for four proteins found on the surface of the monkeypox virus. This development comes as mpox outbreaks continue to spread in Africa. A Phase 1/2 human trial of the vaccine is already underway.