Sanofi reports positive animal test results for COVID-19 vaccine in preclinical trials

French multinational pharmaceutical company on October 14 announced that it is on track to begin trials of its experimental vaccine end of the year after getting positive results in preclinical trials on animals. The firm started an animal assessment of its vaccine product in collaboration with US biotech firm Translate Bio. In an official statement online, the Pharma company said that its outcomes from pre-clinical trials in which it administered two doses of the MRT5500 vaccine produced “beneficial” immune response in monkeys and mice. 

While as many as 40 vaccine candidates are in the middle of human clinical trials, Sanofi’s mRNA-based vaccine candidate MRT5500 induced potent neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in preclinical studies. The therapeutics company, therefore, prepares to begin the Phase 1/2 clinical trials in the fourth quarter of 2020. To tackle this global pandemic, we must look to both the strong knowledge we have from years of infectious disease expertise and the promise of new, innovative technologies,” said Thomas Triomphe, Executive Vice President and Global Head of Sanofi Pasteur. 

“Today’s presentation of these positive results is another development milestone for providing a safe and effective potential vaccine against SARS-CoV2 and shows how promising this technology is.

We are looking forward to working on the next steps with our partner Translate Bio to bring this technology to people worldwide,” he added. 

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Sanofi administered four dose levels were assessed at 0.2, 1, 5, and 10 µg per dose using a two-dose vaccination schedule on mice with a gap of three weeks period. The firm observed a 100 percent seroconversion in just one dose, and on the second dose, neutralizing antibody titers were observed in the animals. “It was also demonstrated that MRT5500-immunized mice and non-human primates exhibited a Th1-biased T cell response against SARS-CoV-2,” the company said in the release. 

Sanofi Pasteur and Translate Bio collaboration

Sanofi Pasteur Inc. and Translate Bio entered into a collaboration to develop mRNA vaccines for the coronavirus in March 2020. By June 2020, the two giant pharmaceutical firms manufactured a novel mRNA vaccine candidate and initiated the pre clinical trials. A clinical-stage mRNA therapeutics firm, translate Bio is exploring potentially transformative medicines for the disease. The promising results for the vaccine were published in preprint server BioRxiv. 

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(Image Credit: Sanofi Website)