April 23, 2021 -- Inovio announced it is planning for a phase III trial outside of the U.S. for its INO-4800 COVID-19 vaccine candidate after the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) discontinued funding for the candidate.
INO-4800 is Inovio's DNA vaccine candidate against SARS-CoV-2 and is composed of an optimized DNA plasmid, which is directly delivered into cells via a proprietary smart device.
The company cited universal eligibility and broad availability of COVID-19 vaccines in the U.S. as reasons why the DOD discontinued funding. Inovio executives said the decision does not affect other work that Inovio does with the U.S. government and is neither a result of the partial clinical hold nor a reflection of the data generated to date for the INO-4800 vaccine.