Moderna Secures $590M Funding From U.S. Government for Bird Flu Jab

Funding and Development - Moderna received $590 million from the U.S. government through BARDA to accelerate the development of an mRNA-based vaccine targeting the H5N1 virus (bird flu) [1] - The funding will support the late-stage development of mRNA-1018, Moderna's investigational pandemic influenza vaccine against H5 and H7 avian influenza viruses [2] - The funds will also help expand clinical studies for up to five additional pandemic influenza subtypes [2] - This is the second time in less than a year that Moderna has secured U.S. government funding for its bird flu vaccine, following a$176 million award in July [4] Clinical Progress - Moderna initiated a phase I/II study for mRNA-1018 in 2023 in healthy adults [3] - Positive preliminary data from the phase I/II study has prompted the company to advance the vaccine to late-stage development [3] - Moderna plans to share data from the phase I/II study at a future medical meeting [3] Market and Industry Context - The U.S. CDC confirmed the first human death from the H5N1 virus earlier this month, with 67 human cases reported since the beginning of last year [5] - mRNA-based vaccines offer faster development and manufacturing scalability compared to traditional vaccines, a key advantage highlighted by BARDA [7] - Moderna's stock rose nearly 5% in after-market trading following the funding announcement, despite a 66% decline over the past year [6][7] Competitive Landscape - Moderna is not the only company working with BARDA on bird flu vaccines; CSL Seqirus has a deal for 150 million doses of its protein-based H5N1 vaccine and received a $34 million award in October [9] - CureVac is developing an mRNA-based bird flu vaccine in collaboration with GSK, currently in phase I/II studies [10] - Novavax is also developing a bird flu vaccine using a new approach, currently in preclinical studies [10]