Pfizer and Valneva reported antibody persistence data six months after the completion of a three-dose (Month 0-2-6) or a two-dose (Month 0-6) vaccination schedule with their Lyme disease vaccine candidate, VLA15, in both children and adults. This is the first time that antibody persistence data are reported in pediatric populations for this vaccine candidate.

Following positive immunogenicity and safety data for Phase 2 study VLA15-221 in April 2022,1 Valneva and Pfizer evaluated the persistence of antibodies six months after the Month 0-2-6 and the Month 0-6 vaccination schedule with VLA15 in healthy adults and pediatric participants (5 to 65 years of age). Data were collected in 96 healthy adults and 81 pediatric  participants (5-17 years of age) for the Month 0-2-6 vaccination schedule and in 84 healthy adults and 78 pediatric participants (5-17 years of age) for the Month 0-6 schedule.

Juan Carlos Jaramillo M.D., Chief Medical Officer of Valneva, said, “We are pleased with these antibody persistence data that further validate the use of the three-dose vaccination schedule in our ongoing Phase 3 study and the acceptable safety and tolerability profiles of our vaccine candidate. Lyme disease continues to spread, representing a high unmet medical need that impacts the lives of many in the Northern Hemisphere, and each new report of positive data takes us a step closer to potentially bringing this vaccine to both adults and children who could benefit from it.”

To achieve the required pediatric safety database, Pfizer and Valneva are planning to initiate a complementary Phase 3 clinical study in early December 2022 to collect additional VLA15 safety data in participants 5 to 17 years of age.

“Rates of Lyme disease continue to increase globally, underscoring the importance of a vaccine that may help protect both adults and children,” said Annaliesa Anderson, Ph.D., Senior Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer of Vaccine Research & Development at Pfizer. “These six-month antibody persistence data are encouraging, and we hope that the data generated from the Phase 3 studies will further support the positive evidence for VLA15 to date.”

Pending successful completion of the Phase 3 studies, Pfizer could potentially submit a Biologics License Application (BLA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Marketing Authorisation Application (MAA) to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in 2025.