Seqirus recently announced that its cell-based manufacturing technology at its facility in Holly Springs, North Carolina has delivered a four-fold increase in seasonal influenza vaccine output in just a period of two years.
“With a global influenza pandemic remaining a real and constant threat, Seqirus is committed to continuing to work with the US Government to realize the full potential of our cell-based manufacturing technology at the Holly Springs site,” Seqirus President Gordon Naylor said. “We’re proud of the advances we’ve made in a relatively short period of time, and are confident in our technical ability to deliver significant additional influenza vaccine capacity that can be rapidly utilized during a pandemic emergency.”
Completed in 2012 and purchased by Seqirus in 2015, the facility was designated as critical national infrastructure for pandemic preparedness in the United States for its ability to enhance the nation’s capacity to respond to pandemic threats. Its cell-based technology serves as an alternative to traditional egg-based development and offers the potential to avoid possible mismatch scenarios during influenza seasons.
According to Seqirus, the facility will produce the company’s proprietary adjuvant, MF59, which could have a dose-sparing effect and further boost the output of influenza vaccines during a pandemic emergency.
“The Holly Springs facility plays a critical role in our national pandemic strategy and is a real asset in US biosecurity,” Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services Tom Price said in a recent visit to the facility. “We continue to appreciate and are reassured by the progress being made by companies like Seqirus that contribute to the nation’s preparedness capabilities.”
At its capacity, the facility will be able to produce approximately 150 million doses of adjuvanted pandemic vaccine within the first six months of a pandemic declaration.