On Friday, Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) announced discontinuing the Phase 2 field study evaluating the efficacy of investigational antiviral candidate mosnodenvir to prevent dengue virus in adults aged 18-65.

The decision to discontinue this study is part of a strategic reprioritization of the company's Communicable Diseases research and development (R&D) portfolio. No safety issues were identified.

Efficacy data from the Phase 2 field study will be available once the final data analyses, which are now underway, are complete.

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Mosnodenvir (formerly JNJ-1802) was shown to be safe and well tolerated in previous Phase 1 and Phase 2a clinical studies.

In October 2023, results from the Phase 2a human challenge study found that the compound induced antiviral activity against dengue (DENV-3) in humans, compared to placebo.

The study evaluated different dosing regimens – low, medium or high – of JNJ-1802 against an attenuated dengue 3 serotype (DENV-3) in healthy adults.

All participants received daily doses of JNJ-1802 or a placebo over 26 days, during which they were challenged with DENV-3 on day 5.

All participants were monitored over 85 days. The study found a dose-dependent antiviral effect on the detectability of DENV-3 RNA and time to first onset of detectable DENV-3 RNA compared to placebo and was safe and well-tolerated.

In May, Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd's (NYSE:TAK) dengue vaccine received World Health Organization's (WHO) prequalification.

TAK-003 is the second dengue vaccine to be prequalified by WHO.

WHO recommended using TAK-003 in children aged 6–16 in settings with high dengue burden and transmission intensity.

Price Action: JNJ stock is down 0.60% at $159.53 at the last check on Friday.

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