US pharmaceutical company Merck & Co Inc (NYSE:MRK), known as MSD outside the US and Canada, on Wednesday announced positive top-line results from a Phase 3 trial evaluating its 9-valent Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, GARDASIL 9, in Japanese males.

The vaccine demonstrated efficacy in reducing the incidence of anogenital persistent infection caused by nine HPV types.

Merck plans to submit these findings to regulatory authorities in Japan and worldwide. The company is also conducting a confirmatory Phase 3 trial to assess GARDASIL 9's effectiveness in preventing HPV-related oral persistent infection.