Several biotechs are working on combined influenza-Covid vaccines. Other viruses could even be added to these booster doses. One way to further expand the vaccine market, say the laboratories.
Moderna, whose anti-Covid mRNA vaccine was authorized in France on January 8, 2021, announced Thursday work on a vaccine combining the booster of the Covid vaccine and the vaccine against the seasonal flu. Despite the relative decrease in efficiency compared to the Delta variant (76% vs. 86% against the Delta variant with two doses), Moderna has chosen not to change its “recipe” for this booster dose, but is now considering including the seasonal flu vaccine, which would also be based on RNA technology. The laboratory could also include a vaccine against RSV (respiratory syncytial virus), which affects infants and the elderly. A combined RSV-HMPV vaccine (metapneumovirus), another virus that affects the same populations as RSV every winter, is also in the pipeline.
Coupling the administration of the Covid vaccine and the flu
Moderna is not the only one in the niche of multiple vaccines. Novavax, whose anti-Covid vaccine is under review by European and American health authorities, also announced on Wednesday that it had started a phase I trial for a combined Covid-influenza vaccine. This type of vaccine could facilitate the simultaneous administration of the two products. In an August 24 press release, the High Authority of Health (HAS) had proposed to combine the injection of the two vaccines during the same appointment, ” subject to the absence of significant immune interference between the two types of vaccines in ongoing studies ». The third dose of Covid-19 vaccine is already available for those over 65 and vulnerable people while the flu campaign will begin on October 26th.
A jackpot for laboratories
Like the Pfizer-BioNTech alliance, Moderna expects to rake in billions of dollars in additional revenue from the COVID-19 vaccine booster campaigns already launched in developed countries. “With the Covid pandemic, the population will be much more willing to recurrent vaccination», Judge the boss of Moderna Stéphane Bancel. The influenza vaccine market could thus grow to the tune of 5 or 6 billion dollars, estimates the leader. A jackpot on all floors.
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