In the first world, Afrigen in S.Africa vaccinates COVID using Modern data, Reuters

Author: Wendell Roelf

EARTHQUAKE (Reuters) – South African Afrigen Biologics has used a publicly available sequence. Modern (NASDAQ 🙂 Inc.’s mrNA COVID-19 vaccine for its own version of the shot, which can be tested in humans before the end of this year, Afrigen CEO said on Thursday.

The vaccine candidate would be the first to do so based on a widely used vaccine without the support and approval of the developer. It is also the first laboratory-scale mRNA vaccine designed, developed and produced on a laboratory scale in Africa.

The World Health Organization (WHO) last year selected an internal consortium in Africa for a pilot project to raise awareness of COVID vaccines for poor and middle-income countries, following the leaders in the COVID mRNA vaccine market. Pfizer (NYSE :), BioNTech and Modern refused the request of the WHO to share technology and experience.

The WHO and consortium partners hope that their technology transfer center will help them bridge the gap between rich nations and poorer countries to gain access to vaccines. About 99% of African vaccines against all diseases are imported and the rest of the vaccines are manufactured locally.

During the pandemic, rich countries collected most of the world’s vaccine supply.

Biovac, a South African vaccine producer in the South, will be the center’s first technology recipient. Afrigen also agreed to help train Argentine and Brazilian companies.

In September, the WHO Cape Town Center decided to go alone after not taking Pfizer and Moderna on board, and both argued that any technology transfer should be overseen due to the complexity of the manufacturing process.

Modern did not immediately comment on Afrigen’s announcement on Thursday.

The modern vaccine was chosen by the WHO because there is a lot of public information and the company is committed to not complying with patents during the pandemic. It is unknown at this time what he will do after leaving the post.

‘ABUNDANT PRODUCTS’

“If this project shows that Africa can take cutting-edge technology and produce cutting-edge products, this will discard the idea that Africa can’t do it and change the global mindset … this could be a game changer,” said Charles Gore. , The MPP’s chief executive, told Reuters at Afrigen’s facility in a converted warehouse.

Under pressure from drug companies in low-income countries, Modern and BioNTech have announced plans to build mRNA vaccine factories in Africa, but production is still a long way off.

“We didn’t copy Moderna, we developed our processes because Modern didn’t give us technology,” Petro Terblanche, Afrigen’s managing director, told Reuters.

“We started with the Modern sequence, because that gives us what we think is the best starting material. But this is not the Modern vaccine, it’s the Afrigen mRNA hub vaccine,” Terblanch said.

He later visited a delegation of EU diplomats from state-of-the-art facilities, where scientists were seen making mRNAs in sterile white-walled rooms.

He said, in collaboration with the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, that the first batches of microliters on the laboratory scale of COVID-mRNA vaccines would be made at Cape Town facilities.

EASIER STORAGE

Terblanch said Afrigen was also working on a next-generation mRNA vaccine that needed no freezing temperature to store, needed for Pfizer and Moderna doses, and would be better suited to Africa, which often struggles with high temperatures and poor health facilities. and infrastructure.

“We’ll probably do a lot of our clinical trials in six months from now, (which means) … suitable for humans. And the goal is November 2022,” Terblanch added.

Online training for other companies to make the plan began with manufacturers in Brazil and Argentina last year. Afrigen expects to include more next month.