Coronavirus: Big pharmaceutical firms give details of vaccine dev't process

20 Avril 2020

Nairobi, Kenya, April 20  (Infosplusgabon) - An agreement between major pharmaceutical companies, Sanofi and the GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) to produce a vaccine for the coronavirus has given details on how a vaccine to deal with the virus could be arrived at before July 2020.

Sanofi and GSK announced this weekend they signed a letter of intent to develop a vaccine by primarily injecting the immune boosters to better fight the influenza.

The use of the immune boosters to make the "adjuvanted vaccine" for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), will require the use of technology from both companies to handle the pandemic.

“As the world faces this unprecedented global health crisis, it is clear that no one company can go it alone,” said Paul Hudson, Sanofi Chief Executive Officer.

Sanofi will contribute its S-protein COVID-19 antigen, which means parts of the virus DNA, which are less harmful, maybe extracted and used to develop the vaccine.

The S-Protein is based on recombinant DNA technology. A recombinant DNA technology involves the cutting and pasting of different groups of the DNA from known diseases related to pneumonia or any other respiratory diseases to produce a vaccine.

The S-Protein technology has produced an exact genetic match to proteins found on the surface of the virus, according to Sanofi and a GSK press statement.

“This collaboration brings together two of the world’s largest vaccines companies,” said Emma Walmsley, Chief Executive Officer, GSK.

“By combining our scientific expertise, technologies and capabilities, we believe that we can help accelerate the global effort to develop a vaccine to protect as many people as possible from Covid-19.”

The DNA sequence encoding this antigen has been combined into the DNA of the baculovirus expression platform, the basis of Sanofi’s licensed recombinant influenza product in the US.

Bacolovirus are pathogens which attack insect-like viruses known also to attack the human body.

Under the strategic alliance between the two pharmaceutical companies, GSK will contribute its proven pandemic adjuvant technology to the vaccine development process.

The use of an adjuvant can be of particular importance in a pandemic situation since it may reduce the amount of vaccine protein required per dose, allowing more vaccine doses to be produced and therefore contributing to protect more people.

The companies plan to initiate Phase 1 clinical trials in the second half of 2020 and, if successful, subject to regulatory considerations, aim to complete the development required for availability by the second half of 2021.

“That is why Sanofi is continuing to complement its expertise and resources with our peers, such as GSK, with the goal to create and supply sufficient quantities of vaccines that will help stop this virus," Sanofi CEO said.

The statement said the combination of a protein-based antigen together with an adjuvant is well-established and used in a number of vaccines available today.

An adjuvant is added to some vaccines to enhance the immune response and has been shown to create a stronger and longer- lasting immunity against infections than the vaccine alone.

It can also improve the likelihood of delivering an effective vaccine that can be manufactured at scale.

As previously announced by Sanofi, development of the recombinant-based COVID-19 vaccine candidate is being supported through funding and a collaboration with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The companies plan to discuss funding support with other governments and global institutions prioritising global access.

“Strategic alliances among vaccine industry leaders are essential to make a coronavirus vaccine available as soon as possible,” said  BARDA Director, Rick Bright.

“Development of the adjuvanted recombinant-based COVID-19 vaccine candidate holds the potential to lower the vaccine dose to provide vaccine to a greater number of people to end this pandemic, and help the world become better prepared or even prevent future coronavirus outbreaks.”

FIN/INFOSPLUSGABON/ASD/GABON2020

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