Shares of Moderna (MRNA) are up 7% after the pharmaceutical company announced that its vaccine against the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is 84% effective at preventing disease in older adults.
In a clinical trial, the vaccine was found to be 83.7% effective at preventing lower respiratory tract disease, defined as two or more symptoms, in people aged 60 or older, according to the Boston-based company.
The vaccine was also found to be 82.4% effective at preventing lower respiratory tract disease in people with three or more symptoms.
No safety concerns were identified during the clinical trial that involved 37,000 people in 22 countries.
Moderna said it plans to file an application for approval of its RSV vaccine with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the first half of this year.
Currently, there is no FDA-approved vaccine against RSV, a disease that kill between 6,000 and 10,000 older adults each year and results in 60,000 to 120,000 hospitalizations, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Investment bank Morgan Stanley (MS) estimates that the global market for an adult RSV vaccine is between $7 billion U.S. and $10 billion U.S.
Moderna’s stock has risen 2% in the last year to trade at $190.69 U.S. per share.
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