In the race for the vaccine against Covid-19, the two giants of the pharmaceutical industry Sanofi and GSK announced on Tuesday that they are joining forces to combine their technologies. Global research is accelerating and three trials are currently being conducted on humans.
Around the world, research for a vaccine against Covid-19 abounds. Two new players have embarked on the pursuit of the vaccine, these are the two giants of the pharmaceutical industry Sanofi and GSK. “The two companies will combine their innovative technologies to develop an adjuvanted vaccine against Covid-19”can we read in a communicated announcing their association. “The world is now facing an unprecedented health crisis, and it is clear that no company can solve it alone”said Paul Hudson, CEO of Sanofi, to justify this collaboration.
Objective: second half of 2021
The race for the vaccine is crucial to fight against Covid-19 and succeed in eradicating the virus. To do so, Sanofi will provide its Covid-19 protein S antigen using technology that “made it possible to obtain an exact genetic replica of the proteins that are on the surface of the virus”. For its part, GSK “will contribute its production of vaccines with adjuvant for pandemic use.”
The objective for these two companies is to provide a vaccine whose price will be “affordable”. With the global health crisis, “the two companies believe that access to vaccines against Covid-19 is a priority and are committed to ensuring that any vaccine resulting from their collaboration is available at an affordable price and to putting in place mechanisms allowing all to have access to it anywhere in the world”describes the press release.
Three projects funded by the Gates spouses
In the rest of the global search for a vaccine, three projects, among the 70 programs underway, are currently being tested on humans. However, caution, this does not mean that a vaccine will soon be available, especially since these three projects use technologies that are still very uncertain which target in particular a nucleic acid essential in the transport of the genetic message and the synthesis of proteins, the virus RNA. Two of the three projects are Chinese. From January 12, researchers in the Middle Kingdom succeeded in sequenced the genome of the virus and since mid-March a human vaccination campaign has been launched. One hundred and eight people, aged 18 to 60, have been injected with the vaccine in development, some of whom have been exposed to the Covid-19 virus to check that they are well immunized against it. The first results are encouraging, but additional tests are conducted to avoid side effects.
The other vaccine project that has moved to the human test phase is American. Led by the Moderna Therapeutics group, it involves injecting the vaccine into 45 guinea pigs and targets a specific protein in the virus’s RNA, the Spike protein, which is one of the virus’s entry points into cells. The first results are expected in early May. Note that they are funded by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, a foundation co-founded by the Gates spouses which has disbursed up to $ 10 million on some of these programs.
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