cbaker_admin
Wed, 07/29/2020 – 18:30
Rhesus macaques that received two doses of Moderna’s experimental COVID-19 vaccine and then were deliberately exposed to SARS-CoV-2 were able to fight off the virus, according to new research. “The virus was cleared very rapidly in the vaccinated animals,” said Barney S. Graham, senior author of a report in the New England Journal of Medicine, and the deputy director of the Vaccine Research Center at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The monkeys in the control group that did not receive the vaccine did not clear the virus quickly. Graham’s scientific team worked with Moderna to develop the vaccine. The results do not mean the vaccine will act the same way in humans, but the findings are considered encouraging. Moderna launched a Phase III test of its vaccine candidate on Monday, aiming to enroll 30,000 for the test of safety and effectiveness. In the animal study, the vaccine did not completely prevent infection; however, the vaccinated animals have significantly less virus in their noses compared with the unvaccinated animals. “If you get a little infection that is cleared rapidly and doesn’t shed very long, it reduces the likelihood of transmission,” Graham said. Additionally, lab tests indicated the vaccine stimulated strong immune responses, including high levels of antibodies that could neutralize the virus.
