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Inovio Pharma doubles immune response rate in elderly patients during phase 1 universal flu vaccine trial
December 12, 2012 at 17:37 CST
Inovio Pharmaceuticals (NYSE MKT: INO) reported Monday that preliminary results from a phase I trial of its H1N1 universal flu vaccine in elderly patients showed a doubling of the response rate of subjects generating infection-preventing antibodies.
The company's H1N1 universal SynCon vaccine, followed by a dose of a seasonal flu vaccine, generated protective immune responses in 40 per cent of trial subjects, compared with a 20 per cent response rate in elderly patients who received the seasonal flu vaccine alone.
Inovio said the interim data is a significant step in developing a more effective flu vaccine for the "most vulnerable" segment of the population, as it noted that people over the age of 65 represent about 90 per cent of annual flu deaths in the U.S.
This is because immune systems of the elderly are weaker, with protective immune responses to seasonal vaccines often seen in just 10 to 20 per cent of this population. Inovio said that this compares to at least 65 per cent of the vaccine recipients in younger adults.
The phase I study is therefore testing the ability of Inovio's SynCon vaccine alone, as well as in combination with the 2012 seasonal flu vaccine, to generate protective levels of antigen-specific antibodies in a greater proportion of the elderly population.
The trial is also seeking to determine the potential for more universal protection against both matched and unmatched seasonal flu strains, Inovio said.
"Today's results provide evidence of the power of our DNA vaccine approach to generate protective antibodies in this vulnerable age group," said president and CEO, Dr. J. Joseph Kim.
"They also show how our vaccines can increase the potency and coverage of existing therapies."
During the trial, 50 healthy elderly patients were divided into three groups, to test the tolerability, safety and immune responses of the different vaccination regimens.
The interim results reported Monday are from the last two arms of the study, being the group of 20 patients receiving the SynCon vaccine followed by a seasonal flu shot 16 weeks later, and a group of 10 subjects getting placebo followed by the seasonal flu shot.
The study is ongoing at the University of Manitoba, in Winnipeg, Canada.
"With limited evidence of other innovations enhancing protection against influenza, this technology could potentially lead to a breakthrough vaccine," said a principal investigator of the study, Dr. Gary P. Kobinger, a professor at the University of Manitoba.
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