As since the start of the vaccine race, Moderna is “in the wheel” of Pfizer.
The American biotech has just announced that its vaccine against Covid-19 was "highly effective" in adolescents aged 12 to 17, according to full results of clinical trials.
An application for authorization to use its vaccine for this age group will be filed "at the beginning of June" with "regulators around the world".
The Pfizer / BioNTech serum was authorized in early May for adolescents in several countries, including the United States.
"We are encouraged that (the vaccine) has been shown to be highly effective in preventing Covid-19 in adolescents," Moderna boss Stéphane Bancel said in a statement.
100% effectiveness 15 days after the second dose
Its clinical trials were conducted on 3,700 participants, half of whom received two doses four weeks apart, and the other half received placebos.
4 cases of Covid were detected in the second group against zero in the vaccinated group, two weeks after the 2nd dose.
100% efficiency, which drops to 93% after the first dose.
The vaccine was "generally well tolerated" and "no concerns about its safety have been identified so far," she said.
The side effects observed were the same as in adults (pain at the site of the injection, fatigue, chills, etc.).
As a reminder, Moderna had shown an efficacy of 95% on adults during clinical trials. Clinical trials are currently being carried out on the last age group, 6 months-11 years.