EMA starts evaluating use of Moderna's COVID vaccine in children aged 6 to 11: Reports

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) announced on Wednesday, November 10, that it had started looking into the use of Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine in children aged 6 to 11. EMA has begun evaluating an application to expand the use of Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine, Spikevax, to children, according to a statement from the agency, ANI reported. Before an official statement allowing Spikevax to be used on children in the aforementioned age group is released, the data and results from the medical study will be reviewed by the EMA's human medicines committee (CHMP). 

In about two months, the announcement is expected to be made. The decision of the CHMP will then be forwarded to the European Commission, which will make the final decision. The vaccine is currently approved for use in children aged 12 and above.

Moderna is disputing claims made by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) that it was involved in the development of the company's mRNA Coronavirus vaccine, raising the stakes in the debate over the government's ability to influence the vaccine's future availability and price, The New York Times reported. The contribution of NIH-funded scientists who worked closely with Moderna at the start of the pandemic to develop the groundbreaking vaccine is at the heart of the dispute. The argument revolves around who invented the core component of the mRNA vaccine, the genetic sequence that causes the vaccine to elicit an immune response.

The NIH claims that three of its scientists should be named on the patent because they worked on the technology with Moderna for more than four years, but the paperwork Moderna filed in July only names its own scientists, according to NYT. The dispute has far-reaching consequences for the vaccine's long-term distribution, not to mention the billions of dollars in potential profits.

Mihir Metkar named as primary contributor Moderna's COVID vaccine

Moderna has identified an Indian-origin scientist as the primary contributor to its Covid-19 vaccine. Mihir Metkar, a Pune-educated bioinformatics scientist, was listed as the "first-named inventor" on the company's patent application for the coronavirus vaccine that uses the revolutionary RNA technique. In two other Covid-19 vaccine patent applications filed with the US Patent Office, he is listed as one of the inventors.

(With inputs from agencies)

Image: AP