Johnson & Johnson Restarts COVID-19 Vaccine Trials in Europe

Johnson & Johnson (J&J) announced that it has restarted all clinical trials in Europe evaluating its COVID-19 vaccine, Ad26.COV2.S, following a pause last month to investigate an adverse event.

The clinical trials resuming in Europe this week are phase 2 studies in Germany, the Netherlands and Spain, as well as a phase 1/2 study in Belgium, the company said. 

Ad26.COV2.S is derived from a common cold virus that is modified to carry a gene from the SARS-CoV-2 virus which causes COVID-19, prompting the immune system to develop resistance to the virus.

J&J, which is also conducting a global phase 3 trial in 60,000 participants, plans to launch a separate phase 3 trial evaluating a two-dose regimen across several countries in Europe.