Benzinga | May 10, 2021 09:10AM EDT

Altimmune's Intranasal COVID-19 Vaccine Candidate Shows Sterilizing Immunity After Single Dose

* Altimmune Inc (NASDAQ: ALT) has announced positive results from a preclinical study evaluating its intranasal COVID-19 vaccine candidate, AdCOVID, in a SARS-CoV-2 challenge model of infection.

* The results showed that a single dose of AdCOVID provided sterilizing immunity in the lungs of vaccinated mice, in contrast to the development of dense pulmonary infection and disease in the lungs of non-vaccinated mice following infection with SARS-CoV-2.

* No detectable levels of infectious virus were observed in the lungs of vaccinated mice, representing a greater than one million-fold reduction compared to the non-vaccinated controls.

* The ongoing Phase 1 trial evaluates the safety and immunogenicity of AdCOVID following a single dose or two intranasal doses administered one month apart.

* Topline data is expected next month.

* Price Action: ALT shares are up 4.37% at $13.85 during the premarket session on the last check Monday.