Dec. 8 COVID Quick Takes: U.K. Vaccines Taskforce to test combinations, plus advances from Clover, Lilly and India’s Serum Institute

U.K. plans to test vaccine combos
The U.K. Vaccines Taskforce will conduct a series of trials next year combining different COVID-19 vaccines, though it has not disclosed which vaccines will be included. Its year-end report stated that the availability of multiple safe and effective vaccines would enable identification of two-dose regimens, including mixing and matching of different vaccines, that provide the most robust and durable immunity. A task force spokesperson told BioCentury the group currently has no plans to pair the U.K.-authorized BNT162b2 from Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) and BioNTech SE (NASDAQ:BNTX) with AZD1222 from AstraZeneca plc (LSE:AZN; NASDAQ:AZN) and the University of Oxford. The U.K. government formally requested two weeks ago that MHRA start reviewing AZD1222. 

Clover starting two pivotal vaccine studies
Sichuan Clover Biopharmaceuticals Inc. announced plans for a Phase II/III trial of S-Trimer with GSK’s pandemic adjuvant, funded by CEPI and slated to start by year-end; and another pivotal trial slated to start next half of the vaccine with CpG 1018, an adjuvant from  Dynavax Technologies Corp. (NASDAQ:DVAX) and alum. In Phase I testing, 9 µg of S-Trimer was sufficient to achieve 100% seroconversion when paired with the adjuvant from GlaxoSmithKline plc (LSE:GSK; NYSE:GSK), versus 30 µg S-Trimer with CpG 1018/alum. The GSK adjuvant-S-Trimer combination induced a mean neutralizing titer >1,800 vs. >1,000 for CpG 1018/alum plus S-Trimer...