A New Hantavirus Vaccine Is in the Works

"Moderna confirmed that it has been working on the development of hantavirus vaccines in collaboration with the Vaccine Innovation Center of Korea University College of Medicine (VIC-K). This comes after an outbreak of hantavirus occurred on a Dutch cruise ship that sailed from Argentina and disembarked its passengers and crew in the Canary Islands on May 10. At least three people aboard the MV Hondius died, and several cases were reported as serious."

"Moderna is the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based biotechnology company that perfected messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines during the Covid-19 pandemic. Following the announcement that Moderna was developing a hantavirus vaccine using this same technology, the drugmaker's stock rose from $49 on May 7 to $55 the next day. But it is important to note that Moderna did not begin work on immunization in the wake of the outbreak at MV Hondius. In fact, the drugmaker undertook this collaborative project with VIC-K in 2023."

"Transmitted mainly through exposure to the droppings, urine, or saliva of infected rodents, it can cause hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (prevalent in Asia or Europe) or hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (more common in the Americas). The wife of actor Gene Hackman may be one of the best known recent people to have died from the latter disease, but it is far from being an exceptional phenomenon. Overall, hantaviruses cause around 50,000 serious and often fatal infections worldwide each year."

Moderna confirmed collaboration with Korea University College of Medicine’s Vaccine Innovation Center (VIC-K) to develop hantavirus vaccines using messenger RNA technology. The confirmation followed a hantavirus outbreak on the MV Hondius, a Dutch cruise ship that sailed from Argentina and disembarked passengers and crew in the Canary Islands on May 10. At least three people died and several cases were reported as serious. Moderna’s work on the vaccine did not start after the outbreak; the collaboration began in 2023. Hantavirus has been known for decades and spreads mainly through exposure to infected rodents’ droppings, urine, or saliva. It can cause hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome in Asia or Europe and hantavirus pulmonary syndrome in the Americas, with about 50,000 serious, often fatal infections worldwide each year.

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