Valneva SE reported further heterologous booster data from an exploratory, small clinical study for its inactivated COVID-19 vaccine, VLA2001. In study VLA2001-307, a subset of participants (three out of nine groups) received VLA2001 following two or three doses of mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, with or without break-through infection (25-50 participants per group). The data show that a booster dose of VLA2001 was well tolerated in previously BNT162b2 (Pfizer/BioNTech)- or mRNA 1273 (Moderna)-vaccinated participants, confirming the favorable safety profile of VLA2001 seen across all studies including in homologous or heterologous booster settings.
However, in this study, an additional booster dose of VLA2001 elicited only a marginally increased neutralizing antibody response. The Company previously reported positive heterologous booster results following primary vaccination with ChAdOx1-S (AstraZeneca) in August 2022 and positive homologous booster results at the end of December 2021. Valneva is currently seeking regulatory approval for VLA2001 as a homologous booster as well as heterologous booster in ChAdOx1-S (AstraZeneca) primed individuals which may support the Company in deploying its inventory in international markets.