Biotechnology firm secures Nipah vaccine contract

Biotechnology firm Public Health Vaccines, LLC has secured a Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) contract of up to $43.6 million to develop a single-dose Nipah virus vaccine.

Public Health Vaccine is slated to partner with Crozet BioPharma during the initiative while up to $9 million of the funding would go to Ology Bioservices, Inc., to support manufacturing and stockpiling efforts.

The virus was first identified in 1999 during an outbreak of illness affecting pig farmers and others having close contact with pigs in Malaysia and Singapore, with over 100 human deaths reported and over a million pigs killed as a means of halting the outbreak.

“Nipah virus poses a real threat to global health security—it has multiple modes of transmission, causes significant morbidity and mortality, and has shown that it can cause significant societal and economic disruption,” Richard Hatchett, CEPI CEO, said. “The world is in desperate need of a vaccine against this deadly virus. We’re pleased to be working with Public Health Vaccines, Crozet BioPharma, and Ology Bioservices to advance the development of what will be CEPI’s fourth vaccine candidate against the highly pathogenic Nipah virus.”

Public Health Vaccines Chief Business Officer Mike McGinnis said the firm is enthusiastic about the new collaboration with CEPI.

“Our missions are aligned and we look forward to jointly addressing this important public health threat,” McGinnis said.