The development of a vaccine against the coronavirus is continuing at Curevac. After the first interim results, the people of Tübingen are "very encouraged". The next phase with tens of thousands of test persons is to start this year.
The biotech company Curevac wants to push the development of its potential corona vaccine after positive results. The Tübingen-based company announced that CureVac is on track to start the decisive effectiveness study with the vaccine before the end of the year. Up to 30,000 test subjects are expected to take part in the global phase 2b / 3 study.
"We are very encouraged by the preliminary phase 1 data. They represent a decisive milestone in our Covid 19 vaccination program and strongly support the further development of our vaccine candidate," said Curevac boss Franz-Werner Haas. CureVac has achieved "positive" interim results.
The vaccine from Curevac is one of three German projects that are being financially supported by the federal government with a special program of around 750 million euros. Curevac will receive up to 252 million euros from this. The European Commission and a number of other vaccine developers have already concluded exploratory talks with the company, in which the federal government holds almost 17 percent through the KfW development bank, in order to secure hundreds of millions of vaccine doses.
Candidate is well tolerated
In the phase 1 study, in which more than 250 volunteers have participated, the vaccine from Curevac was tested in various doses. The vaccine was therefore well tolerated and produced a balanced immune response. It caused a strong binding and neutralizing antibody reaction, and the first signs of the activation of T cells – which the body uses to fight pathogens – appeared.
The level of virus-neutralizing antibodies in the highest dose was comparable to that of recovered, previously seriously ill Covid 19 patients. The phase 2b / 3 study is now to be continued with the highest of the tested doses of twelve micrograms.
Like its German competitor Biontech, Curevac works with a potential active ingredient based on so-called messenger RNA. Biotech is cooperating with the US company Pfizer and plans to apply for approval soon.
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