Promising vaccine trials send US stocks surging

Stocks surged on Wall Street on Monday after inspiring results about the first coronavirus vaccine that has been tested on people.

According to biotech firm Moderna, the vaccine appeared to produce an immune response in eight people who had received it; it also appears to be safe and the phase 3 trials will start on a large number of volunteers in July. The trial is being run in collaboration with the US government.

According to the New York Times, the eight people who were tested -- all healthy volunteers -- made antibodies that were then tested in human cells in the lab, and were able to stop the virus from replicating — the key requirement for an effective vaccine.

The levels of those so-called neutralizing antibodies matched the levels found in patients who had recovered after contracting the virus in the community.

‘‘This is a very good sign that we make an antibody that can stop the virus from replicating," Moderna Chief Executive Officer Stephane Bancel said in an interview. The data “couldn’t have been better," he said, said a Bloomberg report.

If the July trials go well, a vaccine could become available for widespread use by the end of this year or early 2021, Dr. Tal Zaks, Moderna’s chief medical officer, said. How many doses might be ready is not clear, but Dr. Zaks said, “We’re doing our best to make as many millions as possible.”

Most vaccines either consist of inactive pieces of a virus or proteins from a virus made through genetic engineering. When injected into the body, they trigger a lasting immune response similar to that of a person who has been infected and recovered, explained the Bloomberg report.

The Wall Street became the barometer of the initial success that has been achieved and the S&P 500 rose nearly 3 percent in early trading, recouping an entire week’s worth of losses; Moderna’s shares, in turn, surged about 20 percent. Stocks in Europe were 3 to 4 percent.