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Professor Sumi Biswas is the CEO and Co-Founder of SpyBiotech. (Figurative)
London:
The Oxford company of an Indian-born professor announced Tuesday that its Indian partner, the Serum Institute of India (SIIPL), has started trials of a new virus-like particle (VLP) vaccine targeting Covid-19 that has the potential to offer a revolutionary new approach to combat the pandemic.
Professor Sumi Biswas, CEO and co-founder of SpyBiotech, an Oxford University spin-off with a novel vaccine platform to fight infectious diseases, cancer and chronic diseases, said the first subjects were dosed in a trial of phase I / II.
SpyBiotech said it has signed an exclusive global license agreement with SIIPL for the development of the vaccine as part of the study started in Australia.
“Combining SpyBiotech’s single platform technology with Serum’s vast experience in VLP development and manufacturing capabilities is an exciting development at a critical time, giving us the tools to produce the large volume of doses needed to support the global fight against Covid-19, “said Biswas. , Calcutta-born immunologist.
“For SpyBiotech, this is an opportunity to provide an accelerated test point for our platform technology, along with the other candidates that we are advancing in clinical development. Our technology can be combined with multiple vaccine delivery platforms to create a plug and display vaccine that is essential to generate vaccines quickly and safely, “he said.
Biswas moved to the UK in 2005 after studying microbiology at the University of Bangalore and became an associate professor of vaccination at the Jenner Institute, the main center for vaccine innovation at the University of Oxford, which is currently also working on another vaccine candidate for Covid-19.
SpyBiotech says its vaccine candidate uses its “proprietary” SpyCatcher / SpyTag protein “superglue” technology to display the coronavirus spike protein on the surface of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) VLPs, a vaccine. licensed with “excellent safety and immunogenicity data” in humans. and that are currently manufactured in billions of doses. The receptor-binding domain of the coronavirus spike protein is displayed in the VLP, taking advantage of the properties of the platform to induce a potent immune response.
Adar Poonawalla, CEO of SIIPL, said: “We are very excited about the collaboration with SpyBiotech to work on this new vaccine for Covid-19.
“This new technology has the potential to be a powerful new approach to addressing the pandemic. SIIPL looks forward to working together with SpyBiotech to advance this candidate through clinical development.”
SpyCatcher / SpyTag is a platform technology that allows antigens to be displayed on VLPs with a covalent and irreversible bond in a very stable and efficient way with a high density and specific epitope / orientation presentation. The technology can be used for an exceptionally wide range of applications in vaccine development and has established proof-of-concept data in viral, bacterial, parasitic, chronic diseases and cancer.
SpyBiotech said it has exclusive rights from the University of Oxford to apply, commercialize and sublicense plug and display technology for vaccine development.
“Finding a safe and effective vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 [Covid-19] The virus is one of the most pressing scientific challenges of our time, “said Lachlan Mackinnon, director of innovation at Oxford Sciences and president of SpyBiotech.
“Combining the benefits of SpyBiotech’s protein” super glue “technology with the known safety and immunogenicity of the Serum Institute’s Hepatitis B surface antigen virus-like particle offers the potential for a safe COVID-19 vaccine and effective that could be manufactured to scale, “he said. said.
Through the latest agreement, he said that SpyBiotech’s technology can be added to a growing arsenal of weapons that are being developed against this disease.
“We hope that the development program will also help validate the broader potential of the technology, which in the future will be used to attack other infectious diseases and cancer,” he added.
SpyBiotech emerged from the University of Oxford in 2017 and its proprietary protein superglue technology binds antigens to vaccine delivery platforms in a way that minimizes the risk of administration and improves immunogenicity and efficacy.
The company said it is backed by high-quality investors, including Oxford Sciences Innovation (OSI), the Oxford University equity investor, and GV (formerly Google Ventures) and has raised £ 15m in funding to date. date.
