Pfizer and BioNTech have launched a phase 1 trial for an mRNA-based vaccine that would target both COVID-19 and the influenza virus.
According to BioNTech, the vaccine candidate is a combination of Pfizer’s flu vaccine candidate, which is in phase 3 clinical development, and the company’s bivalent omicron-specific coronavirus vaccine dose.
The study includes 180 adults between the ages of 18 and 64. Participants received their first doses of the vaccine candidate this week. The follow-up period for each of the participants will be six months.
- “The flexibility and manufacturing speed of the mRNA technology has demonstrated that it is well-suited for other respiratory diseases,” Annaliesa Anderson, Pfizer’s senior vice president and chief scientific officer for vaccine research and development, said in a statement.
- “Even with existing seasonal influenza vaccines, the burden of this virus is severe across the world causing thousands of deaths and hospitalizations every year,” Anderson said.
Opportune timing: The launch of Pfizer and BioNTech’s study into a combined flu and COVID-19 vaccine comes as health officials warn of what could be a harsh respiratory viral season this year.
Exposure to the influenza virus has been low for the past two years as the pandemic pushed more people indoors, and a harsh flu season observed in the Southern Hemisphere caused officials to worry that the same could happen in the north.
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