Meridian to manufacture dengue fever vaccine under contract for Hawaii Biotech, Inc. using Drosophila cell expression at Viral Antigens, Inc. site.
Meridian Bioscience, Inc. has clinched a biopharmaceutical manufacturing agreement for its life science production facility at Viral Antigens, Inc., (VAI) its subsidiary at Memphis, TN (VAI). Hawaii Biotech, Inc. chose VAI to manufacture and supply bulk, polyvalent, recombinant subunit vaccine for dengue virus types 1-4.
Bulk vaccine for human clinical studies will be produced in VAI’s new facility designed for the production of recombinant proteins and antibodies for use in therapeutic agents and vaccines.
Dengue fever is a viral disease, which is transmitted and spread by infected Aedes mosquitoes. The disease occurs mainly in tropical (Southeast) Asia, Africa, South America, the Caribbean and South Pacific. It is most common in areas infested with infected mosquitoes during the rainy season. The Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization estimate that there are 50 million to 100 million cases of dengue infection world-wide annually with more than 20,000 deaths. Dengue fever is expanding globally.
Hawaii Biotech, based in Hawaii, developed its dengue vaccine using its proprietary technology. This is based on production of recombinant antigens from the Drosophila cell expression system.
There are four main types of dengue viruses. Protection against one type of dengue virus will protect specifically against that type, not any other type. Immunity to less than all four increases the likelihood of death from the more severe forms of dengue in subsequent infections.
The Hawaii Biotech vaccine has been developed in order to confer protective immunity against all four dengue viruses, simultaneously.
Richard Eberly, General Manager, Meridian Life Science sees that the combination of Hawaii Biotech’s vaccine development technologies with VAI’s biopharmaceutical manufacturing capabilities "will increase the likelihood of this important vaccine reaching the global markets for the prevention of dengue fever."
David Watumull, CEO and President, Hawaii Biotech, expects the contract deal with VAI will enable his company’s core competency "to expand into other vaccine markets."
More about dengue fever
Symptoms of dengue fever include sudden onset of fever, painful headaches, eye, joint, and muscle pain, and a rash, which begins on the arms or legs 3 - 4 days after the onset of fever. These symptoms usually resolve within 7-14 days. Individuals with dengue fever may develop blood clotting problems, dengue hemorrhagic fever. This serious form of the disease is characterized by abnormal bleeding and very low blood pressure (shock).
Keywords : Meridian Bioscience Inc. Viral Antiges Inc. Hawaii Biotech Inc. Biopharmaceutical contract manufcturing agreement Dengue fever virus Vaccine Polyvalent types 1 to 4 Drosophila cell expression Clinical trial supply
