Oslo, Aug. 8 (IANS) The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) announced a new funding agreement with Pune-based Gennova Biopharmaceuticals on Tuesday in order to advance the development of their self-amplifying mRNA (saRNA) platform to develop vaccine candidates against unknown pathogenic threats, also known as “Disease X.”The threat of Disease X infecting the human population and rapidly spreading over the globe is greater than ever, according to CEPI.
To combat this, the CEPI announced in a statement that it would provide up to $3.6 million to aid in the optimisation of the saRNA-platform technology, the production procedure, and yield.
The Rhabdoviridae family of viruses, which includes the rabies virus, will thereafter be the target of a vaccine candidate for preclinical testing. According to CEPI, testing the vaccine candidate against this recognised virus with recognised correlates of protection will aid in evaluating the ideas underlying this novel technology.
The global response to Covid-19 was greatly aided by advances in RNA-vaccine technology, and similar technologies will be essential for future pandemic and epidemic responses. The next time Disease X strikes, CEPI is supporting revolutionary RNA vaccine technologies to ensure that everyone in the globe has timely and equitable access to this technology, according to a statement from Dr. Melanie Saville, Executive Director of Vaccine R&D.
In the case of saRNA vaccines, the target antigen and genetic material from a specific group of viruses are combined into the saRNA. Self-amplification refers to the process in which the host cell produces numerous copies of the saRNA thanks to genetic instructions from the virus.
The CLNE delivery mechanism is exclusive to the saRNA technology being developed by Gennova. The CLNE technique adheres the fragile mRNA molecules to the surface of fatty molecules (i.e., a nanoemulsion) as opposed to encasing them in a fatty shell (i.e., lipid nanoparticles), as is the case for many mRNA vaccines. With this method, the production of potential vaccine candidates is easily transferred across manufacturers in the event that this is necessary.
Notably, two of Gennova’s mRNA-based vaccines were created for Covid-19 and were approved for emergency use in India, validating the platform technology.
The funding arrangement we’re signing with CEPI makes us very happy. On a larger scale, we look forward to cooperating with CEPI to enhance the saRNA-technology platform, supporting the democratisation of vaccine availability’, said Dr. Sanjay Singh, CEO, in the announcement.
