The annual meeting of the RBDCOV consortium, held on October 10th in Vall d’Hebron, served as a forum to establish the next steps in the research of the HIPRA COVID-19 vaccine, BIMERVAX®, in the pediatric and adolescent population as well as in adults with immunocompromised conditions.
Laura Ferrer, Director of R&D at HIPRA, emphasized the importance of continuing to collect and analyze data to demonstrate the efficacy of the BIMERVAX® vaccine in the context of the new virus variants.
During the meeting, provisional results from the study in adults with immunocompromised conditions were presented, confirming the safety and efficacy data of the vaccine in this population. These results also demonstrate the durability of protection even against the currently predominant viral variants. Regarding the study in the pediatric and adolescent patient population, recruitment data indicate a progressive increase in participants at the five participating centers where the clinical trial is taking place.
“It is especially important to have efficacy and safety data of BIMERVAX® in the pediatric and adolescent population, and thus all those involved in this study are making an effort to increase participant recruitment to reach the necessary 300 individuals for evaluation,” stated Dr. Pere Soler Palacín, Head of the Infectious Pathology and Immunodeficiencies Unit of Pediatrics at the Vall d’Hebron University Hospital and the Infection and Immunity in Pediatric Patients Group at VHIR.
Progress: Clinical trials in adolescent
Currently, there is an open search for adolescents aged 12 to 18 interested in taking part in the clinical trial, with the aim of including 300 participants. Parents or guardians of interested minors can get in touch with the study coordinators through email or phone using the contact details provided below:
• Vall d’Hebron Hospital (Barcelona)
93 489 31 00 ext. 3271
stephany.zelada@vhir.org
miriam.gonzalezamores@vallhebron.cat
• Dr. Josep Trueta Hospital (Girona)
www.icsgirona.cat/ca/noticies/hospital/2087
hiprahh3@idibgi.org
• HM Montepríncipe Hospital (Madrid) and HM Puerta del Sur Hospital (Madrid)
639 50 13 40 / 659 33 61 84
unidadvacunas@hmhospitales.com
• La Paz Hospital (Madrid)
608 427 004 / 91 727 1644
ucicec.hulp@salud.madrid.org
servicio.pediatria@salud.madrid.o
This call is an opportunity for adolescents and their families to participate in a project that will contribute to the research and development of medical solutions against COVID-19. Community collaboration is essential at this stage of clinical research.
About RBDCOV and the consortium meeting
The RBDCOV project, which aims to test the HIPRA vaccine against COVID-19 in the pediatric population, including adolescents, and individuals with immunocompromised conditions, plays a crucial role in advancing the vaccine.
This meeting is the third to be held in person since the project began in January 2022, attended by the leaders of each of the work packages that structure the project. The consortium meetings are primarily held to analyze the results of the work carried out over the past year, share best practices, and identify areas for improvement in the project.
RBDCOV is one of the projects that are committed to testing and advancing the new vaccine against COVID-19. For this purpose, companies and institutions from five European countries have joined forces to advance collaboratively. The project is led by the biotechnological pharmaceutical company HIPRA and involves the participation of centers in Spain (Vall d’Hebron Institut de Recerca, Irsicaixa, Fundación Lucha contra el SIDA (FLS), IDIBAPS, IDIBGI, ASPHALION, Vinces Consulting, Zabala Innovation), the United Kingdom (Veristat International), Italy (Fondazione Penta), Germany (European AIDS Treatment Group), and Turkey (Metpharm Arastirma Gelistirme Saglik Danismanlik).
