Benzinga | Dec 6, 2021 09:33AM EST

Gritstone bio, CEPI Expand COVID-19 Vaccine Agreement to Combat Omicron Variant

Gritstone bio Inc (NASDAQ:GRTS) and Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) have expanded their agreement to support the development of a self-amplifying mRNA (SAM) vaccine designed to tackle the Omicron COVID-19 variant.

* CEPI will provide up to $5 million in additional funding to conduct a Phase 1 clinical trial of Gritstone's Omicron vaccine candidate in South Africa, where a CEPI-funded trial of Gritstone's Beta variant COVID-19 vaccine is due to begin shortly.

* The SARS-CoV-2 T cell epitopes (TCEs) administered within Gritstone's SAM COVID-19 vaccines are minimally impacted by mutations found within the Omicron variant, reinforcing the platform's potential to address both Omicron and future variants of concern.

* CEPI is already funding up to $20.6 million to support preclinical studies, manufacturing process optimization, and a Phase 1 trial of Gritstone's Beta variant vaccine candidate.

* The funding announced today will expand the Phase 1 trial to include additional arms to evaluate an Omicron-specific version of the vaccine.

* Gritstone has commenced manufacturing its SAM vaccine to target the Omicron variant specifically, and the Omicron arms of the Phase 1 trial are expected to begin in Q2 2022.

* Price Action: GRTS shares down 0.60% at $11.51 during the market session on the last check Monday.