GlaxoSmithKline seeks shingles vaccine

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has filed its shingles vaccine Shingrix for US regulatory approval, the drugmaker said yesterday, bringing the potential $1bn (€918m)-a-year seller a step closer to market.

Shingrix is viewed by analysts as among the British company’s most promising experimental products, since it has shown greater protection among older recipients than Merck’s rival shot Zostavax.

GSK itself highlighted Shingrix as one of its top near-term pipeline hopes last November, during its first research and development day in more than a decade.