The biotechnology company BIOCAD has signed an agreement with the State Scientific Center for Virology and Biotechnology «Vektor» (Novosibirsk) on joint work on a vaccine based on rVSV against the COVID-19 virus. The vaccine development process has reached the final animal safety study stage. The cooperation agreement was signed by Dmitry Morozov (BIOCAD) and Rinat Maksyutov (Vector). According to the parties, the vaccine showed high promise in tests on laboratory animals, including lower primates.
According to the agreement, the biotechnology company BIOCAD, as an industrial partner of the project, takes the costs and organizational efforts associated with conducting clinical trials of the rVSV vaccine, creating the technology for the release of the drug and the commercial production itself. Now, three research groups have been allocated to work on vaccines, in which more than 80 people specialized in virus work: from genetic engineering and virology to chemistry and bioinformatics. This approach provides a complete set of specialists necessary for all stages of the work on the vaccine, including production and clinical trials.
Moreover BIOCAD is currently working on its own development of the mRNA vaccine against coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). Developments will be carried out on the basis of previous developments in cancer vaccines. At the end of March, the company agreed with the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation on the terms and programs of the preclinical and first phase of the clinical vaccine development. Clinical trials are expected to begin in 4-5 months.