CMV Vaccine for Bone Marrow Transplant Recipients

Age: < 65

Sex: Any

Travel: May Be Covered

Time Reimbursement: Varies

Trial Phase: Phase 1 & 2

Recruiting

Sponsor: City of Hope Medical Center

Must not be taking: Antivirals, Live vaccines

Disqualifiers: Cord blood transplant, Autoimmune conditions, others

No Placebo Group

Approved in 2 Jurisdictions

Trial Summary

What is the purpose of this trial?

This study is evaluating whether a vaccine can help prevent CMV infection in people who are undergoing a stem cell transplant.

Will I have to stop taking my current medications?

The trial does not specify if you need to stop taking your current medications, but certain medications like antiviral drugs for CMV and some immunosuppressive therapies are not allowed. It's best to discuss your specific medications with the trial team.

What data supports the effectiveness of the CMV-MVA Triplex Vaccine treatment for bone marrow transplant recipients?

Research shows that the Triplex vaccine, which is designed to boost the body's immune response against CMV, has been effective in increasing CMV-specific T cells in both healthy adults and transplant recipients. This increase in T cells helps control CMV reactivation, which is a common issue after bone marrow transplants, and reduces the need for antiviral medications. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

Is the CMV Triplex Vaccine safe for humans?

The CMV Triplex Vaccine has been tested in clinical trials and was generally well-tolerated with limited side effects in both healthy adults and bone marrow transplant recipients. ^{2 3 4 5 6}

How is the CMV-MVA Triplex Vaccine treatment different from other treatments for bone marrow transplant recipients?

The CMV-MVA Triplex Vaccine is unique because it uses a modified vaccinia Ankara (MVA) vector to express three key antigens from the cytomegalovirus (CMV), which helps stimulate a strong immune response in bone marrow transplant recipients. This approach aims to enhance CMV-specific T cells and reduce the need for antiviral drugs, which can delay CMV-specific immunity. ^{2 3 4 5 7}

Research Team

Anna Pawlowska, MD

Principal Investigator

City of Hope Medical Center

Eligibility Criteria

This trial is for pediatric patients with cytomegalovirus (CMV) who are about to receive a donor stem cell transplant. They must be HIV, HCV negative and HBV DNA negative if previously exposed. Participants need to agree to use contraception and follow the study for one year post-transplant. It's not open to those on recent anti-CMV therapy, with congenital immune deficiencies, active autoimmune conditions needing immunosuppression (except aplastic anemia), or unable to comply with study procedures.

Inclusion Criteria

Participant must be willing to comply with study and/or follow-up procedures, including willingness to be followed for one year post-HCT

Negative serum or urine beta-human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) test (female patient of childbearing potential only) within two weeks of registration

I am scheduled for a stem cell transplant with a closely matched donor and without T-cell removal.

Exclusion Criteria

I am not taking any medications that could affect the study drug's evaluation.

I haven't taken immunosuppressants for an autoimmune condition in the last 5 years, except if I have aplastic anemia.

I am scheduled for a cord blood transplant.

Trial Timeline

Screening

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial

2-4 weeks

Treatment

Participants receive multi-antigen CMV-modified vaccinia ankara vaccine intramuscularly on days 28 and 56 post-HCT

8 weeks

2 visits (in-person)

Follow-up

Participants are monitored for safety and effectiveness after treatment

Up to 1 year post-HCT

Treatment Details

Interventions

• Multi-peptide CMV-Modified Vaccinia Ankara Vaccine (Cancer Vaccine)

Trial Overview The trial is testing a multi-antigen CMV-modified vaccinia ankara vaccine in children undergoing stem cell transplants. The aim is to find the safest dose that works best at helping these young patients resist life-threatening complications from CMV after their transplant.

Participant Groups

Group I: Supportive Care (multi-antigen CMV-modified vaccinia ankara) Experimental Treatment 2 Interventions

Patients receive multi-antigen CMV-modified vaccinia ankara vaccine IM on days 28 and 56 post-HCT.

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

City of Hope Medical Center

Lead Sponsor

Trials

614

Recruited

1,924,000+

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

Collaborator

Trials

14,080

Recruited

41,180,000+

Findings from Research

The Triplex vaccine, which uses a modified vaccinia Ankara (MVA) platform to target three key cytomegalovirus (CMV) antigens, was found to be safe in a clinical trial involving 24 healthy adults, with no serious adverse events reported and only mild, transient side effects.

The vaccine successfully induced strong and lasting CMV-specific T-cell responses, even in individuals without prior immunity to CMV, suggesting its potential effectiveness for broader populations, including patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplants.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

MVA vaccine encoding CMV antigens safely induces durable expansion of CMV-specific T cells in healthy adults. La Rosa, C., Longmate, J., Martinez, J., et al.[2021]

Vaccinating healthy donors with the Triplex vaccine before hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) significantly increased levels of CMV-specific T cells in recipients, indicating enhanced immune protection against cytomegalovirus (CMV).

The Triplex vaccine was well-tolerated with minimal adverse events, and the approach shows promise for reducing the need for antiviral prophylaxis, which can hinder the development of CMV-specific immunity post-transplant.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Hematopoietic stem cell donor vaccination with cytomegalovirus triplex augments frequencies of functional and durable cytomegalovirus-specific T cells in the recipient: A novel strategy to limit antiviral prophylaxis. La Rosa, C., Aldoss, I., Park, Y., et al.[2023]

In a phase 2 trial involving 102 high-risk CMV-seropositive hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients, the Triplex vaccine showed a trend towards reducing CMV reactivation, with 9.8% of Triplex recipients experiencing reactivation compared to 19.6% in the placebo group.

The Triplex vaccine was found to be safe, with no serious adverse events or deaths related to the vaccine, and it successfully increased levels of CMV-specific T cells, suggesting it effectively enhances the immune response against CMV.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Poxvirus Vectored Cytomegalovirus Vaccine to Prevent Cytomegalovirus Viremia in Transplant Recipients: A Phase 2, Randomized Clinical Trial. Aldoss, I., La Rosa, C., Baden, LR., et al.[2023]

The developed CMV vaccine, based on modified vaccinia Ankara (MVA), successfully expresses three key CMV antigens and shows strong immunogenicity, stimulating both primary and memory immune responses in mouse models.

In human studies, the vaccine effectively activates existing CMV-specific CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cell responses in healthy CMV-positive individuals and patients shortly after hematopoietic cell transplant, indicating its potential for therapeutic use.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

A fusion protein of HCMV IE1 exon4 and IE2 exon5 stimulates potent cellular immunity in an MVA vaccine vector. Wang, Z., Zhou, W., Srivastava, T., et al.[2022]

The CMVPepVax vaccine demonstrated safety in a phase 1b trial with 36 CMV-seropositive patients undergoing stem-cell transplantation, showing no adverse effects on transplant outcomes or unexpected serious adverse events.

Patients receiving the CMVPepVax vaccine had significantly better relapse-free survival compared to those under observation, suggesting potential clinical benefits that warrant further investigation in a phase 2 trial.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Viraemia, immunogenicity, and survival outcomes of cytomegalovirus chimeric epitope vaccine supplemented with PF03512676 (CMVPepVax) in allogeneic haemopoietic stem-cell transplantation: randomised phase 1b trial. Nakamura, R., La Rosa, C., Longmate, J., et al.[2022]

In a phase 2 clinical trial involving 20 patients with lymphoma or myeloma, the Triplex vaccine significantly enhanced the reconstitution of adaptive natural killer (NK) cells and CMV-specific T cells after autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation (auto-HCT), particularly in CMV-seronegative patients.

The vaccine led to a notable increase in adaptive NK cells and CMV-specific T cells, suggesting a potential for improved immune response post-transplant, although further research is needed to assess the clinical benefits of these immune enhancements.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

CMV Triplex Vaccine to Enhance Adaptive NK and T-cell Reconstitution After Autologous Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation. Rashidi, A., La Rosa, C., Curtsinger, J., et al.[2023]

The CMVpp65 peptide vaccination was well tolerated in 10 patients after allogeneic stem cell transplantation, with 7 out of 9 patients clearing CMVpp65 antigenemia after four vaccinations, indicating its potential efficacy in preventing CMV reactivation.

The vaccination led to significant increases in CMV-specific CD8+ T cells and neutralizing antibodies, suggesting that both cellular and humoral immune responses are important for the clearance of CMV, making it a promising strategy for high-risk patients.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Peptide vaccination in the presence of adjuvants in patients after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation with CD4+ T cell reconstitution elicits consistent CD8+ T cell responses. Schmitt, M., Schmitt, A., Wiesneth, M., et al.[2018]

References

1. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

MVA vaccine encoding CMV antigens safely induces durable expansion of CMV-specific T cells in healthy adults. [2021]

2. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Hematopoietic stem cell donor vaccination with cytomegalovirus triplex augments frequencies of functional and durable cytomegalovirus-specific T cells in the recipient: A novel strategy to limit antiviral prophylaxis. [2023]

3. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Poxvirus Vectored Cytomegalovirus Vaccine to Prevent Cytomegalovirus Viremia in Transplant Recipients: A Phase 2, Randomized Clinical Trial. [2023]

4. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

A fusion protein of HCMV IE1 exon4 and IE2 exon5 stimulates potent cellular immunity in an MVA vaccine vector. [2022]

5. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Viraemia, immunogenicity, and survival outcomes of cytomegalovirus chimeric epitope vaccine supplemented with PF03512676 (CMVPepVax) in allogeneic haemopoietic stem-cell transplantation: randomised phase 1b trial. [2022]

6. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

CMV Triplex Vaccine to Enhance Adaptive NK and T-cell Reconstitution After Autologous Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation. [2023]

7. Australia pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Peptide vaccination in the presence of adjuvants in patients after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation with CD4+ T cell reconstitution elicits consistent CD8+ T cell responses. [2018]