Gritstone bio Announces Presentations from Phase 1 Studies Evaluating Next-Generation Vaccine Candidate for COVID-19 at IDWeek 2023 - Seite 2

Date/Time: Saturday, Oct 14, 2023, 12:15 - 1:30 PM
Poster #: 2395
Presenter: Jennifer Whitaker
Location: BCEC Poster Hall

Copies of the presentations will be posted on the Events page of the Gritstone bio website after their conclusion.

About the CORAL Program
Gritstone’s CORAL program is applying Gritstone’s infectious disease approach for the prevention of COVID-19. The program aims to drive both B cell and T cell immunity using self-amplifying mRNA (samRNA) and novel immunogens containing Spike plus additional viral targets. To date, the CORAL program has comprised three Phase 1 trials evaluating multiple samRNA vaccine candidates across various patient populations and settings: CORAL-BOOST (healthy volunteers following primary series of currently approved COVID-19 vaccines); CORAL-CEPI (vaccine-naïve healthy and HIV+ subjects in South Africa); and CORAL-NIH (run by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease [NIAID] in previously vaccinated healthy volunteers). Results to date have demonstrated induction and persistence of high neutralizing antibody levels through at least 6 months as well as broad T cell responses. The CORAL program is supported by Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), NIAID, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

About Self-amplifying mRNA (samRNA)
Self-amplifying mRNA (samRNA) is rapidly emerging as a well-tolerated, scalable and widely-applicable platform technology which can be used to develop multiple vaccines simply by changing the sequence of the antigen (the target of the immune system) that is encoded in the vector RNA and delivered in a lipid nanoparticle. Like traditional mRNA vaccines, samRNA vaccines use the host cell’s translation system to convert mRNA to protein target antigens in order to stimulate immunity. Unlike traditional mRNA, samRNA creates multiple copies of the antigen RNA once in the cell, potentially leading to extended duration and magnitude of antigen expression. Gritstone designs novel immunogens, the vaccine regions encoding virus antigens, and includes both Spike antigen (similar to first-generation COVID-19 vaccines) and evolutionarily conserved, non-Spike antigens likely to drive T cell responses in its next-generation COVID-19 vaccines. Potential benefits of this samRNA “Spike plus” approach include (1) strong and durable induction of neutralizing antibodies to Spike, (2) broad and durable T cell immunity (CD4+ and CD8+) to multiple viral proteins, (3) potency at lower doses (dose sparing), and (4) refrigerator stability.