Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (TSE:4502/NYSE:TAK) ("Takeda") today announced that it will import and distribute 50 million doses of Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine candidate, mRNA-1273, starting in the first half of 2021, pending licensure in Japan. This effort is part of a three-way agreement among Takeda, Moderna and the Government of Japan's Ministry of Health Labour and Welfare (MHLW).

Roche (SIX: RO, ROG; OTCQX: RHHBY) and Atea Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced that they are joining forces in the fight against COVID-19 to develop, manufacture and distribute AT-527, Atea’s investigational oral direct-acting antiviral, to people around the globe. AT-527 acts by blocking the viral RNA polymerase enzyme needed for viral replication, and is currently being studied in a Phase 2 clinical trial for hospitalised patients with moderate COVID-19.

Sanofi and GSK have signed a Statement of Intent with Gavi, the legal administrator of the COVAX Facility, a global risk-sharing mechanism for pooled procurement and equitable distribution of eventual COVID-19 vaccines.

Sanofi and GSK intend to make available 200 million doses of their adjuvanted recombinant protein-based COVID-19 vaccine, if approved by regulatory authorities and subject to contract, to the COVAX Facility.

The Russian Direct Investment Fund, (RDIF, Russia's sovereign wealth fund), has submitted applications to the World Health Organization (WHO) for accelerated registration (Emergency Use Listing, EUL) and prequalification of the world's first registered vaccine against the coronavirus Sputnik V, which is based on a well-studied platform of human adenoviral vectors. The Russian Federation has become one of the first countries to apply to WHO for prequalification of its vaccine against the novel coronavirus infection.

Novavax, Inc. (Nasdaq: NVAX), a late-stage biotechnology company developing next-generation vaccines for serious infectious diseases, announced updates on its Phase 3 clinical development program of NVX-CoV2373, its COVID-19 vaccine candidate. NVX‑CoV2373 is a stable, prefusion protein made using Novavax' nanoparticle technology and includes Novavax' proprietary Matrix‑M™ adjuvant.

Johnson & Johnson is preparing to resume recruitment in the pivotal Phase 3 ENSEMBLE trial of its investigational Janssen COVID-19 vaccine in the United States after a temporary pause.

The independent Data Safety and Monitoring Board (DSMB) overseeing the ENSEMBLE study has recommended resuming trial recruitment. Following consultation with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), preparations to resume the trial in the United States, including submissions for approval by the Institutional Review Boards, are now underway.

Moderna, Inc., (Nasdaq: MRNA) a biotechnology company pioneering messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines to create a new generation of transformative medicines for patients, today announced a supply agreement with the Ministry of Public Health of Qatar for mRNA-1273, Moderna's vaccine candidate against COVID-19, to support the Ministry's ongoing efforts to secure early access to a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine for the people of Qatar.