Moderna begins testing experimental HIV vaccine in an early-stage clinical trial

Shares of Moderna Inc. MRNA, +8.59% soared 19.2% in trading on Monday after the company announced that it began dosing participants in a Phase 1 clinical trial of its experimental HIV vaccine. The trial is an open-label, randomized study evaluating the investigational mRNA vaccine in 100 adults between the ages of 18 and 55 years who are HIV negative. It’s being funded by the National Institutes of Health, which said Monday that it is also sponsoring two other trials of HIV vaccine candidates. Moderna’s stock has tumbled 34.9% so far this year, while the broader S&P 500 SPX, -0.74% is down 11.8%.