Clinical Trial for an Investigational Bird Flu Vaccine

https://trials.modernatx.com/study/?id=mRNA-1018-P301&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9emYPizaX3qpBLMYTGbf_GFXdEAAbvdbMWtK8cjNzQymCUOkUe24uJ6DBkSb-Tp7xrtM2VrSeFhuwAqOMqqzn-4BU8Aw&_hsmi=415011283 Moderna continues bird flu vax study, but limits work in the U.S. In other vaccine news: Last year, when the U.S. government canceled hundreds of millions of dollars of contracts with Moderna, one of the casualties was an effort to test and license a bird flu vaccine, a tool the world will want should the virus ever evolve to set off a pandemic. https://cepi.net/cepi-fund-pivotal-phase-3-trial-modernas-mrna-pandemic-influenza-candidate?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--ysALS5qv_2VrkhyQpTsecu10f3093Rbf4WQSGggMVV8wNGBgX84TqZLjJguktLOAZPk7zDT7eA5Za_Wp8MFpVc53cqQ&_hsmi=415011283&utm_content=415011283&utm_source=hs_email But Moderna, with funding support from the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, is pushing forward with a Phase 3 trial of its H5 messenger RNA shot, announcing Tuesday night that the first participants in the U.S. and U.K. had received doses of its candidate vaccine, mRNA-1018. Notably, the bulk of the work — 3,000 of the 4,000 volunteers, and 26 of the 36 trial sites — is taking place in the U.K., while the rest happens in the U.S. At a media briefing, Hiwot Hiruy, a senior director of clinical development at Moderna, declined to say whether more of the trial would have been held in the U.S. if the country’s health department, led by vaccine critic Robert F. Kennedy Jr., hadn’t cut its support for the program. https://www.statnews.com/2025/09/25/mrna-vaccines-united-kingdom-invests-as-united-states-cuts-back/?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_sdBhFiO2MIqftM21nTvQF9uhAPVkFgL6YTLuV18MlnBWt9Uqj1ztcf7DASfgjIOpcf6lxMIUUZMzoVtgv0mpv0psngQ&_hsmi=415011283&utm_content=415011283&utm_source=hs_email The U.K., meanwhile, has been aiming to attract more investment from biopharma companies by speeding up the process of getting trials up and running. The country has also emphasized its particular enthusiasm for mRNA research, underscored by its decade-long partnership with Moderna. — Andrew Joseph https://www.statnews.com/2023/06/23/uk-moderna-partnership-science/?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_e0dlaQx2x3_36h6xLgm3pXEbpwr1OtXpr2aKcivoBjOnhc_e9cHaHBP4COKKJAo01p_eet0BnPhksX18xGOYDVWPOGA&_hsmi=415011283&utm_content=415011283&utm_source=hs_email HHS cancels $766 million in Moderna contracts for vaccines for flu pandemics The decision will be seen as a significant blow to pandemic preparedness https://www.statnews.com/2025/05/28/moderna-flu-vaccine-development-cancelled-by-hhs-mrna-platform-offers-speedy-pandemic-response/?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9uFW37B6DiMB1AFPnyKoO59e3QkgHSckBtuICzg9Vi_xvDCcBychNjZoOcOuJdaGa9N46vPjOJaMD63ljTX2PZQ8v12A&_hsmi=415011283&utm_content=415011283&utm_source=hs_email