Gachon University, the Korea mRNA Vaccine Initiative (KmVAC), and the International Vaccine Institute (IVI) recently exchanged a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to expedite collaboration.

The agreement calls for close cooperation in areas including exchange of technical information for infectious disease research and vaccine development; mutual cooperation in the entire vaccine development cycle including discovery of vaccine candidates, non-clinical and clinical trials; promotion of networking on research achievements and early vaccine utilisation; personnel exchange between related organisations; and joint hosting of vaccine R&D forums.

Gachon University boasts of robust capabilities in medical service and education as it has the colleges of medicine, Asian medicine, pharmacology, and nursing. The university also operates the Intelligence Brain Science Research Center, the Lee Gil-ya Cancer and Diabetes Institute, and the Gachon Bionano Research Institute that excel in brain imaging and basic science.

The Korea mRNA Vaccine Initiative was launched in January 2022 with the support from the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.

The initiative aims to secure vaccine technology that can promptly respond to the threat of emerging infectious diseases that will emerge in the future, and to build a platform for vaccine self-sufficiency with homegrown technology in order for Korea to strengthen its health security. Currently, KmVAC has awarded grants to nine clinical and non-clinical research projects, with a total of 26 organizations conducting research. 

IVI Director General, Dr Jerome Kim said, “mRNA technology is one of the most promising platform technologies, and we are thrilled to collaborate with KmVAC, Gachon University and other partners to transform this innovative technology into new vaccines.”