Japan's Daiichi Sankyo Co. said on Tuesday its mRNA-based vaccine had proven successful as a COVID-19 booster shot.
In a trial of about 5,000 Japanese adults, those who had received the vaccine, known as DS-5670, developed levels of COVID-neutralizing antibodies that were as good as or better than those of people who had had other mRNA shots, the company said in a release.
Based on the results, Daiichi Sankyo will file a new-drug application to regulators in January 2023.
Approval would give Japan a home-grown source for mRNA vaccines, which have made up the bulk of its COVID inoculations to date.
Japan has relied on imports of shots developed by U.S.-based drugmakers Pfizer Inc and Moderna Inc.
Daiichi Sankyo's shares jumped on the news, rising 3.3% versus a 0.1% advance in the benchmark Nikkei gauge.