The RIGHT Foundation, a global health technology research fund, and EuBiologics (206650) partnered to eradicate meningococcal disease in Africa. The RIGHT Foundation, a non-profit organization established with contributions from the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and domestic pharmaceutical and biotech companies, aims to prevent infectious diseases in lower-middle-income countries.
EuBiologics, with the support of the RIGHT Foundation, is developing a five-valent meningococcal vaccine and plans to transfer the technology to Biovac, a pharmaceutical company based in South Africa. This initiative is expected to mark a turning point in addressing meningitis in Africa, while highlighting the growing role of South Korean biopharmaceutical companies in the global health sectorOn November 11, the RIGHT Foundation officially announced the collaboration with EuBiologics, Biovac, and the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) at the "2024 World Bio Summit" held at Songdo Convensia. Hani Kim, the CEO of the RIGHT Foundation, emphasized in an interview with the Seoul Economic Daily, "EuBiologics and the Right Foundation share a common goal of contributing to global public health by supplying vaccines as a public good to Africa."
Meningococcal meningitis is a bacterial disease that can cause fatal infections of the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord. Major symptoms include headaches, high fever, nausea, and vomiting. In the case of delayed treatment, the mortality rate can reach up to 50%. In many African countries, inadequate healthcare infrastructure often leads to delayed treatment.
This project is valued at 45.4 billion KRW and focuses on the development of a pentavalent meningococcal conjugate vaccine (NmCV-5) and local production in Africa. With the support from the Right Foundation, EuBiologics has completed Phase 1 clinical trials of EuNmCV-5 and is currently conducting Phase 2 and 3 trials in West Africa. The company aims to transfer the vaccine technology to Biovac by 2025 and obtain export approval from South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety by end of 2027, with plans to submit a prequalification (PQ) application to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Young-Ok Baik, CEO of EuBiologics, said, "One of the six strains causing meningitis, X, is prevalent in Africa, we plan to supply the vaccine to the the meningococcal belt region in Sub-Saharan Africa." He also added, Given our experience with the prequalification(PQ) process through the supply of cholera vaccine Euvichol to UNICEF, we will share our expertise and provide support accordingly. Seanette Wilson, Senior Project Manager at Biovac, explained, "Biovac will produce the drug product(DP) locally using the drug substance(DS) from EuBiologics. We are also responsible for preparing regulatory documents for approval by South Africa's SAHPRA and the WHO PQ process."
Once EuNmCV-5 is developed, it will be used for meningitis prevention campaigns, routine immunization, and stockpiling for outbreak preparedness. Richard Gordon, Head of International Business Development at SAMRC, predicted, "If successful vaccine development and distribution are carried out, the capacity to eradicate meningitis will be achieved in the sub-Saharan countries where the incidence of the disease is high.
If the project progresses successfully, Biovac is expected to supply a minimum of 10 million doses locally. "CEO Baik stated, 'This will not only be a step toward achieving vaccine self-sufficiency in Korea, but also an opportunity to enter the African market and expand in the global market.'" He added, ‘We expect positive impacts on public health contributions and on revenue growth.
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