Valneva and LimmaTech Announce First Vaccination in Phase 2b Human
Challenge Study of Tetravalent Shigella Vaccine Candidate S4V2
Saint Herblain (France) and Schlieren
(Zurich), November 13, 2024 – Valneva SE
(Nasdaq: VALN; Euronext Paris: VLA), a specialty vaccine company,
and LimmaTech Biologics AG, a clinical-stage biotech company
developing vaccines for the prevention of life-threatening
diseases, announced today that the first participant has been
vaccinated in a Phase 2b controlled human infection model (CHIM)
study of Shigella4V2 (S4V2), the world’s most clinically advanced
tetravalent bioconjugate shigellosis vaccine candidate, for which
Valneva obtained an exclusive worldwide license from
LimmaTech1.
In the CHIM study S4V03 (Identifier:
NCT06615375), S4V2 will be tested for safety and preliminary
efficacy in approximately 120 healthy Shigella-naïve
participants aged 18 to 50 years at three sites in the United
States. The study, sponsored and conducted by LimmaTech, is a
parallel-group, randomized, double-blind, multicenter,
placebo-controlled study and will include two steps. In a first
step, the vaccine dose will be confirmed and, in a second step,
participants will be challenged with the Shigella sonnei
strain 53G one month after injection of S4V2 or placebo, in order
to assess the ability of S4V2 to protect against the Shigella
infection. The infection rate of shigellosis caused by the
Shigella sonnei strain 53G in the group vaccinated with
S4V2 will then be compared to the group of participants who
received placebo injections.
Thomas Lingelbach, Chief Executive
Officer of Valneva, commented, “Human challenge studies
are unique in their ability to investigate and understand the onset
and development of disease in a safe and highly controlled
environment. This CHIM study forms part of our staggered and
risk-mitigating development strategy for S4V2, as it should provide
the first results on efficacy before potentially advancing to
further CHIM and Phase 3 studies.”
Dr. Patricia Martin, Chief Operating
Officer of LimmaTech, stated, “The start of this trial is
a significant milestone for the S4V2 program and our combined
efforts with Valneva to bring an effective vaccine against
shigellosis to market. Today, we are an important step closer to
LimmaTech’s vision of developing vaccines to fight against serious
diseases and antimicrobial resistant pathogens.”
In addition to the CHIM study, LimmaTech will
conduct a Phase 2 pediatric study in Low- and Middle-Income
Countries expected to begin before the end of 2024. Valneva will
assume all further development, including CMC (chemistry,
manufacturing and controls) and regulatory activities, and be
responsible for its commercialization worldwide, if approved.
Last month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted
Fast Track designation to S4V2, recognizing its potential to
address a serious condition and fill an unmet medical
need2.
Shigellosis is the second leading cause of fatal
diarrheal disease worldwide. However, there is currently no
approved Shigella vaccine and the development of Shigella
vaccines has been identified as a priority by the World Health
Organization (WHO)3.
About Shigellosis
Shigellosis is a global health threat caused by the Gram-negative
Shigella bacteria. It is estimated that up to 165 million
infections4 are due to Shigella of which 62.3
million occur in children younger than five years. Diarrheal
infection is one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality in
numerous countries as well as in travelers and deployed military
personnel in endemic regions. There are an estimated 600,000 deaths
attributed to Shigella each year and it is the second
leading cause for diarrheal deaths5. The standard
treatment for shigellosis is oral rehydration and antibiotic
therapy, however, the bacteria have acquired resistance to many
antibiotics with numerous reports of outbreaks of
multidrug-resistant strains, making treatment extremely difficult.
Currently, no licensed Shigella vaccine is available.
About Valneva SE
We are a specialty vaccine company that
develops, manufactures, and commercializes prophylactic vaccines
for infectious diseases addressing unmet medical needs. We take a
highly specialized and targeted approach, applying our deep
expertise across multiple vaccine modalities, focused on providing
either first-, best- or only-in-class vaccine solutions.
We have a strong track record, having advanced multiple vaccines
from early R&D to approvals, and currently market three
proprietary travel vaccines, including the world’s first and only
chikungunya vaccine, as well as certain third-party vaccines.
Revenues from our growing commercial business help fuel the
continued advancement of our vaccine pipeline. This includes the
only Lyme disease vaccine candidate in advanced clinical
development, which is partnered with Pfizer, the world’s most
clinically advanced Shigella vaccine candidate, as well as vaccine
candidates against the Zika virus and other global public health
threats. More information is available at www.valneva.com.
About LimmaTech Biologics
AG
LimmaTech Biologics is at the forefront of combating the global
antimicrobial resistance epidemic based on its unparalleled track
record in vaccine technology and clinical candidate development.
The company is leveraging its proprietary self-adjuvanting and
multi-antigen vaccine platform alongside additional
disease-specific vaccine approaches to prevent increasingly
untreatable microbial infections. With decades of expertise and an
expanding, robust pipeline, the LimmaTech team is dedicated to
generating protective solutions to deliver transformative value
worldwide. LimmaTech Biologics is backed by specialist healthcare
investors, including Adjuvant Capital, AXA IM Alts, Novo Holdings
REPAIR Impact Fund, and Tenmile.
For more information, please visit www.lmtbio.com.
Valneva
Investor and Media Contacts
Laetitia Bachelot-Fontaine
VP Global Communications & European Investor Relations
M +33 (0)6 4516 7099
laetitia.bachelot-fontaine@valneva.com |
Joshua Drumm, Ph.D.
VP Global Investor Relations
M +001 917 815 4520
joshua.drumm@valneva.com |
For LimmaTech
LimmaTech Biologics AG
Franz-Werner Haas, CEO
E-mail: media@lmtbio.com
For media enquiries
Trophic Communications
Gretchen Schweitzer or Jacob Verghese
Phone: +49 172 861 8540
E-mail: limmatech@trophic.eu
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including with respect to financial results for 2024; mid-term
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1 LimmaTech Biologics AG
2 Valneva and LimmaTech Awarded FDA Fast Track
Designation for Tetravalent Shigella Vaccine Candidate S4V -
Valneva
3 Immunization, Vaccines and Biologicals
(who.int)
4Shigellosis | CDC Yellow Book 2024
5 Shigellosis | CDC Yellow Book 2024
- 2024_11_13_CHIM_Study_S4V2_PR_EN.Final
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