MRNA shot takes aim at the nerve pain of shingles

NCT ID NCT07817108

What the study statuses mean

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Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now This study
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Sep 14, 2026 · Last updated Sep 15, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

Researchers are testing an experimental mRNA vaccine called ABO1108 to see whether it can prevent herpes zoster, the painful rash also known as shingles. The trial enrolls adults aged 40 and older, including people whose long-term conditions are stable. Participants receive two injections about two months apart, either the vaccine or a saline placebo, and researchers track how many develop confirmed shingles over time along with safety and immune response.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
an experimental mRNA vaccine against herpes zoster, given as two injections about two months apart
What this could lead to
If it works, this could add an mRNA-based option for preventing shingles, a painful rash that becomes more common with age.
What could go wrong
The vaccine may not lower shingles rates enough to matter, and mRNA vaccines can cause short-term side effects like soreness, fever, or fatigue. This trial is still testing whether the approach works.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Phase 3

Large-scale testing in a bigger group. Usually the last step before a treatment can be approved.

Participants

About 18,000 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Started

Jun 2026

Expected to finish

Oct 2027

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

A company

The lead sponsor is a pharmaceutical, biotech, or medical-device company.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

40 years and older

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Accepted

You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: 1. Be able and willing to comply with the protocol requirements for all scheduled follow up visits, agree to participate in the trial, and voluntarily sign the ICF approved by EC; 2. Chinese male or female aged ≥40 year. Participants with underlying medical conditions may be enrolled if their conditions are stably controlled; 3. Be able to communicate well with the investigator, understand and comply with the protocol requirements for trial participation; 4. Female participants of childbearing potential and male participants (whose female partners are of childbearing potential) must have practiced effective contraception from the end of the last menstrual cycle of the female participant or partner until the day of vaccination, and must continue to use effective contraception for 6 months after completion of the voluntary vaccination. During this period, they must also refrain from donating sperm or ova. Alternatively, female participants may be considered not of childbearing potential. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Within 3 days prior to vaccination, presence of acute illness, acute exacerbation of chronic disease, or febrile/near febrile state, or use of anti inflammatory drugs, antibiotics, antihistamines, or antiviral drugs due to physical discomfort; 2. On the day of vaccination, for participants aged 40-59 years, systolic blood pressure ≥140 mmHg and/or diastolic blood pressure ≥90 mmHg; for participants aged ≥60 years, systolic blood pressure ≥160 mmHg and/or diastolic blood pressure ≥100 mmHg; 3. Female participants who are known to be pregnant or breastfeeding, or who have a positive pregnancy test if of childbearing potential; 4. History of allergy to any component of the investigational vaccine, or history of severe allergic reactions to other vaccines, foods, or drugs; 5. History of herpes zoster (shingles), history of varicella (chickenpox) within the past year, or close contact with individuals with varicella/herpes zoster within the past year; 6. Previous or planned vaccination with herpes zoster or varicella vaccines (including licensed or unlicensed vaccines) during the trial period; 7. Use of any vaccine within 30 days prior to vaccination, or planned use of any vaccine other than the investigational vaccine within 30 days after administration of the investigational vaccine; 8. Current participation in another drug or medical device clinical trial within 6 months prior to vaccination, or planned participation in such a trial before the end of this trial; 9. History of clinically diagnosed coagulation abnormalities or coagulation disorders, or contraindications to intramuscular injection such as receiving anticoagulant therapy; 10. Known medical history or diagnosis confirming that the participant has or has had a disease affecting immune system function, including malignancies, congenital or acquired immunodeficiencies, autoimmune diseases, or other conditions affecting immune function; 11. History of myocarditis, pericarditis, or idiopathic cardiomyopathy, or any condition that increases the risk of myocarditis or pericarditis; 12. Uncontrolled cardiovascular diseases, severe or uncontrolled respiratory diseases, neurological diseases, hematological and lymphatic diseases, liver and kidney diseases, metabolic and skeletal system diseases, or known severe congenital malformations, developmental disorders, or clinically diagnosed severe chronic diseases that, in the investigator's judgment, may affect the trial results; 13. Acute infection, acute phase of chronic infection, or currently receiving anti tuberculosis treatment, or those with a previous positive treponemal antibody test; 14. History or current presence of clearly diagnosed neurological diseases or psychiatric disorders or family history of neurological/psychiatric diseases, receipt of facial fillers within 6 months prior to vaccination, and other neurological diseases that the investigator deems unsuitable for participation; 15. Current skin diseases that, in the investigator's judgment, may affect trial observations; 16. Use of long term immunosuppressive therapy or other immunomodulatory drugs within 6 months prior to vaccination, or planned use during the period from enrollment to 1 month after the full course of vaccination, with the exception of topical drugs. Topical drugs should not exceed the recommended dose in the package insert or induce signs of systemic exposure. Long term systemic corticosteroids for ≥14 days at a dose of ≥2 mg/kg/day or ≥20 mg/day prednisone or equivalent; 17. Receipt of immunoglobulins and/or blood products, or blood donation, within 3 months prior to vaccination, or planned during the period from enrollment to 1 month after the full course of vaccination; 18. Suspected or known drug abuse that, in the investigator's opinion, may affect safety evaluation or trial compliance; 19. Investigators at the trial site/study site, or employees of the sponsor or third party monitoring company involved in the trial; 20. Other conditions that the investigator deems unsuitable for participation in this trial.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

How to take part

Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.

  1. The study's own enquiry address

    This study publishes an address for enquiries. See it below .

  2. The places running it

    4 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.

  3. The official record

    ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.

    Open the record ↗

  4. A doctor treating you

    A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Center for Disease Control and Prevention

    RECRUITING

    Nanning, China

  • Hebei Province Center for Disease Control and Prevention

    RECRUITING

    Shijiazhuang, China

  • Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention

    RECRUITING

    Jinan, China

    Contact Email: •••••@•••••

  • Zhejiang Center for Disease Control and Prevention

    RECRUITING

    Zhejiang, China

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