What’s left of Johnson & Johnson’s infectious disease work continues to shrink, after the company announced Friday that it had stopped work on a mid-stage study of its dengue virus antiviral.
The New Jersey pharma said that it had halted the adult study of the drug, mosnodenvir, as “part of a strategic reprioritization of the company’s communicable diseases research and development (R&D) portfolio.”
The company wound down infectious disease and vaccine R&D over the course of 2023, moving remaining assets into its global health division.
J&J says that no safety issues were identified in the study and that efficacy data would be available once a final analysis was complete. Study investigators were notified of the discontinuation and all participants completed the study per the protocol, the company said.
The trial aimed to include 1,850 people, according to a US clinical trials database. It had been expected to wrap by May 2025.
J&J reported Phase 2a results a year ago showing that the oral drug had an antiviral effect better than placebo in patients who were exposed to dengue virus five days after treatment. The data showed a “dose-dependent antiviral effect on the detectability of DENV-3 RNA and time to first onset of detectable DENV-3 RNA compared to placebo,” according to the company.
Infectious diseases and vaccines were once a pillar of J&J’s portfolio, with an approved Covid-19 vaccine and an RSV candidate in late-stage development. But the company has moved away from the field, stopping work on its RSV vaccine in March 2023. Other clinical-stage prophylactic candidates fell by the wayside as well.
The infectious disease changes aren’t the only significant change at the company. Last month, Endpoints News reported that the company’s cardiovascular and metabolic unit would fold. A source familiar with the decision told Endpoints that the move mainly impacted sales, marketing and medical affairs staff. Work is continuing on a late-stage stroke prevention treatment, milvexian, that J&J is working on with Bristol Myers Squibb.