Moderna's Coronavirus Vaccine Safe Among The Elderly, Study Shows

A small trial of elderly COVID-19 patients showed that Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine was able to produce neutralizing antibodies against the disease. Moderna announced on Wednesday that the result of the early stage clinical trial suggested that the company’s vaccine could provide the immunity necessary to protect an individual from the new coronavirus.

The study was conducted on 10 adults between the ages 56 and 70 and elderly adults aged 71 and older. Each participant was given two 100 microgram doses of the vaccine 28 days apart.

The participants were able to produce T-cells and neutralizing antibodies that are necessary to build immunity to the virus. The researchers also noted that the antibodies produced by the vaccine were higher than the antibodies naturally produced by recovered COVID-19 patients.

While some of the participants reported fatigue, chills, headaches and pain during the trial, the researchers said the vaccine seemed to be well tolerated in general. No adverse events were reported during the trial and most of the mild symptoms reported disappeared within two days.

Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine is one of the several coronavirus vaccines in development around the world. It contains genetic material called RNA, which helps incite the immune system to fight the new coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

In May, Moderna released preliminary data showing that its coronavirus vaccine was able to produce antibodies in 45 healthy adults. However, some experts said the phase one study was too small to provide conclusive results. With the new data released on Wednesday, Moderna confirmed that the vaccine could be a safe and effective vaccine to prevent COVID-19, even for the elderly.

Moderna started the third phase of its coronavirus vaccine testing last month on 30,000 volunteers. The result of the test is expected to come out in October.

Earlier this month, U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed that the U.S. government would purchase 100 million doses of Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine. The U.S. earmarked $955 million for Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine development and inked a $1.53 billion deal with the firm to provide doses of its vaccine to U.S. citizens once it has been proven safe and effective.