The United States government has allocated a significant investment of almost $600 million to the biopharmaceutical company Moderna to accelerate the development of vaccines based on messenger RNA (mRNA) against avian flu, with special emphasis on flu strains that could become a pandemic threat.
This financial support is part of the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) ongoing efforts to anticipate and mitigate the risk of future public health crises, such as those caused by highly contagious and dangerous influenza viruses.
Since 2023, Moderna has been working closely with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), an HHS entity, to develop mRNA vaccines. that can be used in the event that new strains of influenza emerge with the potential to become pandemics.
This effort includes not only the research and development of vaccines against the H5N1 strain of bird flu, but also against other variants that could represent a danger to global health. In 2023, Moderna had already received $176 million as part of this initiative, and with the recent allocation of funds, the company will be able to accelerate its work and move more quickly toward creating an effective vaccine.
One of Moderna’s key advances in this project is its mRNA-1018 vaccine, which is designed to combat the H5 and H7 bird flu viruses. This vaccine has demonstrated “positive preliminary data” in Phase 1 and 2 clinical trials, leading to optimism about its effectiveness in combating these dangerous strains.
With additional funding provided by the US government, Moderna is in the preparation phase of launching a Phase 3 study of this vaccine, a crucial step towards its possible distribution in the event of a massive outbreak of bird flu.
Face future threats
The company intends to share findings from these trials at an upcoming medical conference, which could offer more insight into the vaccine’s potential to address future viral threats.
The recent HHS funding will also allow Moderna to accelerate research and development of a vaccine against the H7N9 strain of bird flu, another variant that has concerned health authorities due to its ability to infect humans.
Public health officials have noted that the speed with which new flu strains emerge and spread necessitates an innovative and flexible approach to vaccine development.
In this regard, the US government’s financial support is designed to expand Moderna’s clinical trials, enabling the evaluation of multiple vaccines and increasing the database supporting the use of mRNA technology in these contexts.
In addition to ongoing work with the H5N1 and H7N9 strains, HHS has expressed interest in having Moderna design up to four new vaccines against different flu strains that can be evaluated in Phase 1 studies.
The goal of this initiative is to generate clinical data that supports the accelerated development of mRNA vaccines, that would be essential to contain future outbreaks of avian flu or any other influenza strain with pandemic potential. As flu viruses continue to mutate, the ability to quickly adapt to new variants will be key to preventing a global pandemic.
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