Benzinga | Feb 22, 2021 05:46AM EST

Sanofi, GSK Announced Initiation of New Phase 2 Study of Their Adjuvanted Recombinant Protein-based Covid-19 Vaccine Candidate

Sanofi (NYSE:SNY) and GSK (NYSE:GSK) announced today the initiation of a new Phase 2 study with 720 volunteers aged 18 and over to select the most appropriate antigen dosage for Phase 3 evaluation of their adjuvanted recombinant protein COVID-19 vaccine candidate.

"Over the past few weeks, our teams have worked to refine the antigen formulation of our recombinant-protein vaccine, based on learnings from our initial Phase 1/2 study." said Thomas Triomphe, Executive Vice President and Head of Sanofi Pasteur. "We are confident that our vaccine candidate has strong potential and we are very encouraged by the latest preclinical data. This new Phase 2 study will enable us to identify the final vaccine formulation for adults of all ages. We have demonstrated our commitment to focusing efforts and capabilities towards the global fight against the pandemic, and this new study takes us a step closer to achieving our primary goal of developing a COVID-19 vaccine with a good efficacy and safety profile."

Roger Connor, President of GSK Vaccines added: "We are pleased to be starting this new Phase 2 study. The world needs multiple vaccines and we are confident that combining our proven pandemic adjuvant system with this improved antigen formulation will have significant potential as the pandemic evolves. We look forward to further progressing this vaccine candidate to Phase 3 in Q2 2021, if this Phase 2 study is successful."

In parallel to the new Phase 2 study and recognizing the global emergence of new SARS-CoV-2 variants and their potential impact on vaccine efficacy, Sanofi has commenced development work against new variants, which will be used to inform next stages of the Sanofi/GSK development program.