Investors are taking notice as hVIVO pushes boundaries with a scientifically validated, commercially ready hMPV challenge model. With high infection rates, quantifiable results, and zero safety concerns, this platform sets a new benchmark for vaccine testing accuracy and speed.
hVIVO has successfully developed the world’s first commercially available human metapneumovirus (hMPV) challenge model, enabling rapid and reliable testing of vaccines and antivirals in a controlled setting. Following a successful pilot study, the model is now being expanded to gather more robust data for accurate vaccine efficacy assessments.
Healthy volunteers underwent thorough health screening and immunological profiling before being inoculated with a standardised dose of hVIVO’s A2 GMP hMPV strain. This was administered intranasally via pipette droplets. Monitoring involved regular nasal swabs for RT-qPCR testing and daily symptom tracking to capture detailed infection kinetics and immune response.
The structured study timeline begins with a screening period, followed by quarantine admission and informed consent. Participants were inoculated on Day 0 and observed intensively for 11 days, with final assessments at Days 12 and 28. Throughout the study, multiple endpoints ensured rigorous evaluation.
The model demonstrated 100% infection success across participants, with all individuals showing at least two PCR-confirmed detections of the virus within 48 hours of inoculation. Impressively, 87.5% had quantifiable PCR levels, confirming strong viral replication. Symptomatic infection occurred in 63% of subjects, with 50% reporting moderate illness, validating the model’s ability to replicate clinically meaningful disease.
These outcomes position hVIVO’s hMPV model as a powerful tool for de-risking early-stage clinical programmes, delivering critical human efficacy data with precision and reproducibility.
hVIVO plc (formerly Open Orphan plc), led by Cathal Friel, is a rapidly growing specialist contract research organisation (CRO) and the world leader in testing infectious and respiratory disease vaccines and antivirals using human challenge clinical trials, providing end-to-end early clinical development services for its broad and long-standing client base of biopharma companies.
