The stock of Plymouth Meeting-based Inovio Pharmaceuticals increased by as much as 15 percent after the company announced positive animal study data for its COVID-19 vaccine candidate, writes John George for the Philadelphia Business Journal.

According to the company, its experimental vaccine was effective in protecting non-human primates from the coronavirus 13 weeks after their last vaccination. INO-4800 has already shown durable antibody and T cell responses in monkey specie rhesus macaques.

The DNA-based vaccine generated antibodies that are successful in neutralizing both the earlier strain of the virus and its mutant variant that now account for more than 80 percent of infection cases.

The company officials emphasized that INO-4800 is the only COVID-19 vaccine currently under development that has demonstrated long-term protection in non-human primates “challenged with” the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

“All other previously reported NHP vaccine protection studies actually challenged the animals at the peak of their immune response,” said Inovio CEO J. Joseph Kim. “Our study demonstrates that INO-4800 could provide protection in a more real-world setting.”

The company is planning to begin a late-stage study of the vaccine candidate in August.

Read more about Inovio at the Philadelphia Business Journal by clicking here.