What happened
Actions of Modern (NASDAQ: MRNA) It went up on Monday, following news that the biotech company had begun its phase 3 study of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate and received additional funding from the US government.
At the close of trading, Moderna’s stock price rose more than 9%.
And that
Moderna revealed Sunday that the Advanced Biomedical Research and Development Authority (BARDA) would provide it with up to $ 472 million in additional funds to promote the development of its experimental vaccine COVID-19, mRNA-1273. Combined with BARDA’s previous commitment of $ 483 million, Moderna has now received a total of $ 955 million in funding from the United States government.
Moderna’s shares rose sharply on Monday. Image source: Getty Images.
On Monday, Moderna said it had begun dosing participants in its phase 3 study for mRNA-1273. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) will work with Moderna to carry out the randomized, placebo-controlled trial, which is expected to include up to 30,000 participants.
Now what
It would be a blessing for Moderna, and its shareholders, if its experimental vaccine is safe and effective against COVID-19. Moderna said it will be able to produce approximately 500 million doses per year, and possibly up to one billion doses per year, starting in 2021, due in part to the supply and manufacturing agreements it has.
Still, while early results from Moderna’s vaccine candidate COVID-19 have been promising, there is still a risk that the phase 3 trial of the drug will not be successful.
Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel is not discouraged. “We hope that this trial will demonstrate the potential of our vaccine to prevent COVID-19 and to overcome this pandemic,” said Bancel.
