Moderna (NSDQ: MRNA) started a Phase I trial of its COVID-19 vaccine (mRNA-1273) in healthy volunteers, the first coronavirus vaccine to begin clinical testing. Moderna is a Cambridge, MA biotech that develops novel mRNA products for therapeutics and vaccines. Its mRNA-1273 encodes for a prefusion stabilized form of the Spike (S) protein, but unlike most vaccines, does not contain any form of the virus itself. Moderna has previously developed mRNA vaccines for SARS, Zika and the cytomegalovirus (CMV) In its ten years of existence, Moderna has established a dizzying array of partnerships and subsidiaries to develop a large portfolio of mRNA candidates.

The trial will enroll 45 young, healthy volunteers at the Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute in Seattle. The primary endpoint is safety. The candidate will be administered at various levels to determine the appropriate dose for subsequent trials.

The mRNA-1273 vaccine was developed in conjunction with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) and backed by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI). Moderna shipped its candidate to the NIAID on February 25, and trials are underway in less than three weeks.

Although Moderna's vaccine candidate is the first COVID-19 vaccine to start trials, other companies have already begun several trials of treatments for the outbreak, primarily repurposed drugs that are aimed at reducing the cytokine release storm that is considered the primary cause of death in severely affected patients.

See our other articles on Moderna.

Disclosure: none.