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<\/p>\nParis, France…Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines global business unit of Sanofi, will leverage previous development work for a SARS vaccine which may unlock a fast path forward for developing a COVID-19 vaccine. Sanofi will collaborate with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, expanding the company\u2019s long-standing partnership with BARDA.<\/p>\n
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COVID-19 belongs to a family of coronaviruses that can cause respiratory disease. In late 2002, the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) coronavirus emerged and then largely disappeared by 2004. Sanofi plans to further investigate an advanced pre-clinical SARS vaccine candidate that could protect against COVID-19.<\/p>\n
\u201cAddressing a global health threat such as this newest coronavirus is going to take a collaborative effort, which is why we are working with BARDA to quickly advance a potential vaccine candidate,\u201d\u00a0said David Loew, Global Head of Vaccines at Sanofi.\u00a0\u201cWhile we are lending our expertise where possible, we believe the collaboration with BARDA may provide the most meaningful results in protecting the public from this latest outbreak.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Sanofi to utilize innovative recombinant technology platform<\/p>\n Sanofi will use its recombinant DNA platform to produce a 2019 novel coronavirus vaccine candidate.\u00a0 The recombinant technology produces an exact genetic match to proteins found on the surface of the virus. The DNA sequence encoding this antigen will be combined into the DNA of the baculovirus expression platform, the basis of Sanofi\u2019s licensed recombinant influenza product, and used to rapidly produce large quantities of the coronavirus antigen which will be formulated to stimulate the immune system to protect against the virus.<\/p>\n \u201cEmerging global health threats like the 2019 novel coronavirus require a rapid response,\u201d\u00a0said BARDA Director Rick A. Bright, Ph.D.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBy expanding our partnership with Sanofi Pasteur and leveraging a licensed recombinant vaccine platform, we hope to speed development of a vaccine candidate to protect against a new virus.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Sanofi uniquely positioned in search for a coronavirus vaccine<\/p>\n In non-clinical studies, the SARS vaccine candidate was immunogenic and afforded partial protection as assessed in animal challenge models. This development work by Protein Sciences (acquired by Sanofi in 2017) provides a head start in expediting a COVID-19 vaccine. Additionally, since there is a licensed vaccine based on this platform this will allow for research and materials to be produced relatively quickly for clinical testing. Sanofi\u2019s platform also has the potential to manufacture large quantities of the vaccine candidate.<\/p>\n Sanofi\u2019s long-standing commitment to protecting public health<\/p>\n This agreement with BARDA marks another milestone in Sanofi\u2019s ongoing contributions to help fight public health threats.\u00a0 Sanofi continues to actively explore potential opportunities where the company\u2019s deep vaccine experience and innovative technologies may contribute to addressing the coronavirus public health situation, including sharing Sanofi\u2019s vaccine research and development experience with the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations.<\/p>\n