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France’s Pasteur Institute said on Monday it was halting the development of a Covid-19 vaccine with US pharmaceutical company Merck after the results of clinical trials proved disappointing.
The partners announced a link in May last year to develop a jab based on an existing measles vaccine, which was introduced in phase 1 clinical trials in August.
“In these first human studies, the potential vaccine was well tolerated, but produced lower immune responses than those seen in people who recovered naturally and those seen in licensed vaccines,” a statement said. of the Pasteur Institute.
The announcement is a further blow to the hopes of a vaccine run by France, following recent news that the national pharmaceutical company Sanofi is also struggling to bring its vaccine candidate to market.
Sanofi announced in December that its cage will be ready by the end of 2021, and the group is now encouraged by the government to contribute to the production of rival vaccines that have already been authorized for use in Europe.
These include products from the German-American connection BioNTech / Pfizer and the American pharmaceutical group Moderna.
The UK has also authorized the use of a vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca, which is being evaluated by EU regulators.
The Pasteur Institute, named after pioneer scientist Louis Pasteur, who developed a rabies vaccine in 1885, said it was working on two other Covid-19 vaccines that were not yet ready for clinical trials.
The decision to drop the Covid vaccine based on a measles shot “has no impact on the continuation of research conducted by the Pasteur Institute on two other vaccine candidates using different methodologies,” he said.
(AFP)