First joint AZ, Moderna program heading to clinic

Moderna Therapeutics Inc. (Cambridge, Mass.) and AstraZeneca plc (LSE:AZN; NYSE:AZN) said the pharma filed a clinical trial application to start a Phase I study of AZD8601, an mRNA-based therapy that encodes VEGF-A for cardiometabolic diseases.

AstraZeneca and Moderna began a five-year deal in 2013 to discover, develop and commercialize mRNA therapeutics for cancer, cardiovascular, metabolic and renal diseases. The program would be the first under that deal to reach the clinic. ...