South Korea-based SK bioscience has signed a contract with Germany's IDT Biologika for the contract development and manufacturing of the drug product for the Zaire Ebola vaccine with an updated manufacturing process, being developed in collaboration with MSD (Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA) and Hilleman Laboratories.
The agreement forms part of a development project supported by approximately $30 million in funding from the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), which was announced in January.
The project focuses on addressing the manufacturing complexity and ultra-cold chain requirements associated with MSD’s existing Zaire Ebola vaccine. Key objectives are to enhance supply stability and accessibility by increasing manufacturing yield and improving thermo stability.
Under the agreement, SK bioscience will produce drug substance, while IDT will leverage its CDMO expertise, know-how, and advanced facilities to undertake drug product development and manufacturing.
More recently, SK bioscience and IDT were jointly selected for Phase 1 of a next-generation vaccine development initiative led by the European Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA) under delegation from the European Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA). The project aims to develop a high-immunogenic seasonal influenza vaccine for older adults and a patch-based pandemic influenza vaccine and is regarded as a strategic initiative to strengthen Europe’s pandemic preparedness.
