By Chris Wack

Capricor Therapeutics shares were up 7% at $4.42 after the company said its proprietary StealthX exosome-based multivalent vaccine for the prevention of SARS-CoV-2 has been selected to be part of Project NextGen.

The stock hit its 52-week low of $2.68 on Nov. 10, and is down 3% in the past 12 months.

Project NextGen is an initiative by the U.S. Health and Human Services Department to advance a pipeline of new, innovative vaccines providing broader and more durable protection for Covid-19.

As part of Project NextGen, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, will conduct a Phase 1 clinical study with Capricor's StealthX vaccine, subject to regulatory approval. NIAID's Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases would oversee the study.

The StealthX vaccine is a proprietary vaccine developed internally by Capricor using exosomes that were engineered to express either spike or nucleocapsid proteins on the surface. Preclinical results from murine and rabbit models showed the StealthX vaccine resulted in robust antibody production, potent neutralizing antibodies, a strong T-cell response and a favorable safety profile.

Write to Chris Wack at chris.wack@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 24, 2024 10:48 ET (15:48 GMT)