Moderna to compete with its RSV vaccine against GSK and Pfizer

Moderna enters European respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) market. The European Commission has approved a vaccine against the respiratory disease.‘mRESVIA’. In particular, the antigen is aimed at adults over 60. Now it will have to compete with drugs from GSK and Pfizer to gain a foothold in the business.

In June last year, Moderna’s serum already received a positive opinion from the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA). This is the first mRNA vaccine authorised by the European Commission against a disease other than Covid 19.Now different countries will decide whether to use the American serum in their national vaccination plans.

Other vaccines against this respiratory disease have already been approved in Europe, so Moderna will face several competitors. On the one hand, GSK’s Arexvi, which was given the green light last June for use in the same population as the biotech company. In less than a year, it has become a bestseller with revenues exceeding €1 billion. On the other hand, there’s Pfizer’s Abrysvo, approved at least a month later. It’s also aimed at mothers during pregnancy to protect babies.

Recall that last summer, GSK filed a lawsuit against the American giant, claiming that its serum against this pathology violated intellectual property rights. In particular, it violated four published patents on the antigen. Reuters.

The European Commission also authorized Sanofi’s vaccine, developed jointly with AstraZeneca, against RSV in late 2022. Bayfortus was the first antibody it gave the green light to. It is aimed in particular at protecting newborns.

Respiratory syncytial virus is a common virus, especially in the fall and winter, that usually causes mild symptoms, but For vulnerable people, this can have serious consequences.