Premas VLP technology-based vaccine development on track
Company in talks with global pharma companies to explore possibility to use the technology to make vaccines in their countries
Hyderabad: Gurugram-based Premas Biotech is making progress with its virus-like particle (VLP) technology with a promise to bring an oral vaccine against Covid-19. The company’s investors are seeing a long-term play with vaccination demand to continue to spike globally in the coming years, including in India.
The company’s protein subunit vaccine’s novel platform is not only cost effective but highly scalable. The company aims to develop a two-dose vaccine based on its platform. The company is talking to pharmaceutical companies who bring complementary strengths, including regulatory, distribution and commercial relevance.
Prabuddha Kundu, co-founder and managing director, Premas Biotech, told Telangana Today, “We are in discussion with a number of large pharmaceutical companies who would like to use our technology and make vaccines in their countries from across Asia, South America and Africa. This includes two large pharmaceutical companies in India as well. Due diligence is in progress. Technology looks robust. Phase I data could come up by November.”
On the trial scenario, he added, “The vaccine candidate has received funding through our sister company, Genique Lifesciences from BIRAC to take the VLP technology into phase I trial. The interim data looks promising and shows that it is safe. Trial design has been done and we are moving ahead. Scaling up of production processes has been done. We have managed to improve the yield by at least three times. The initial assumptions are consistent with animal (in three species) studies. Over the next 6-8 weeks, we expect to get more data that supports its strength of protection as well.”
Meanwhile, Oravax, an Oramed Pharmaceuticals and Premas Biotech joint venture entity, on Wednesday announced that it has out-licensed certain rights in India to Premas, following which the latter plans to manufacture, test, and potentially commercialise the injectable version of the VLP vaccine in India. As Oravax maintains its focus on oral vaccines, it is gearing up to begin clinical trials for its oral Covid-19 vaccine, first in Israel, then in additional clinical sites internationally.
The study protocol has been approved by the Institutional Review Board at Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv, Israel and is now pending approval from the Israeli Ministry of Health to do the phase I capsule trial. There are also other countries where the partners have applied.
He added, “Premas Biotech has cloned, expressed and purified all the variants of Spike protein and along with the N, M and E proteins that form an array of very high quality antigens for diagnostics development. The company has tied up with partners to develop and sell in India, high quality Lateral Flow Assays (LFAs) for antigen detection as well as an advanced LFA for multiple antibody detection for a multiplicity of antigens as well as receptor binding domain.”
Premas also generated a Covid-focused antibody library with a focus on creating therapeutic and diagnostic antibodies. The company has progressed down this path and is looking at potential partners to accelerate the development, Kundu informed.
Also read: Oravax inks pact with Premas Biotech for injectable vaccine technology
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