NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) – Vanderbilt University Medical Center says it will begin recruiting 1,000 volunteers in late July for a late-stage study of an experimental COVID-19 vaccine.
Vanderbilt says the Phase 3 randomized, placebo-controlled trial will be open to people over the age of 18. They will receive two injections of the vaccine or an inactive placebo and will be followed for two years.
The goal of the study is to find out how effective the vaccine is at protecting against COVID-19 and how long the protection lasts. For more information, contact [email protected] or [email protected]
According to a statement, VUMC is one of several US centers participating in the national Phase 3 trial, which will enroll 30,000 volunteers over the next two months.
The vaccine is being developed by Moderna Inc. in collaboration with the Vaccine Research Center of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the National Institutes of Health.
“The Modern mRNA vaccine contains genetic material from the spike protein on the surface of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The spike protein allows the virus to bind and fuse with the membrane of certain types of cells in the body, the first step in infection, “the statement said in part.
Vanderbilt researchers also provided laboratory support for a phase 1 trial of the vaccine in 45 healthy adults. “The New England Journal of Medicine” released a report Tuesday, saying the vaccine had no safety concerns and induced anti-SARS-CoV-2 immune responses in all participants.
A Phase 2 study to further examine the vaccine’s safety and its ability to create an immune response is currently underway in healthy adults.
.
