The first agreement is with the Korea National Institute of Health, an agency of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Agency, to collaborate on mRNA vaccine research, while the second is with the federal government's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and its Ministry of Health and Welfare to explore mRNA vaccine manufacturing opportunities, the company said.

In other Moderna news, the firm has entered into a manufacturing services and supply agreement with Samsung Biologics under which Samsung will manufacture Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine for markets outside of the U.S. Samsung will use its facilities in Incheon for aseptic fill-finish, labeling, and packaging services to support hundreds of millions of doses of the vaccine intended to supply markets outside of the U.S. This agreement will begin in the third quarter of this year.

The South Korean government authorized use of Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine on May 21 and has purchased 40 million doses.

Japan approves Moderna COVID-19 vaccine
Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare recently approved Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine, and distribution in the country by Takeda will begin immediately.

Moderna booster produces antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 variants
Moderna announced that initial results from a phase II study suggest a single booster dose of its messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine candidates mRNA-1273 or...

Moderna increases manufacturing capacity
Moderna has doubled the size of its manufacturing technology center in Norwood, MA, expanding the facility from a production and lab space into an industrial...

Moderna secures WHO emergency use listing for COVID-19 vaccine
Moderna has secured emergency use listing from the World Health Organization (WHO) for its COVID-19 vaccine.

DNA Script, Moderna to develop on-demand vaccines, therapeutics
DNA Script and Moderna have announced a partnership to develop on-demand vaccines and therapeutics as part of the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects...