GSK and CureVac Make ‘Next Generation’ Vaccines They Say Can Tackle Multiple COVID-19 Variants at Once

• GlaxoSmithKline and CureVac have agreed to develop new vaccines that target several variants of the coronavirus.

• The injections, designed as boosters for a drop in immunity to another vaccine, could be available in 2022.

• Research suggests that existing vaccines may be less effective against certain variants of the coronavirus.

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British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and German biotech CureVac plan to co-develop “next-generation” vaccines that could work against multiple variants of the coronavirus at once, the companies said on Wednesday.

The vaccines could be available in 2022, subject to authorization, and could work as a booster if the immunity of another vaccine wanes, or for people who have not yet been vaccinated, the companies said.

Research suggests that existing vaccines – such as those made by Pfizer and BioNTech, as well as Moderna – may be less effective against contagious coronavirus variants with certain mutations.

The companies are investing 150 million euros ($ 180 million) in the merger.

The vaccines will be mRNA vaccines, which use a genetic code to trigger the body’s immune response. The COVID-19 vaccines authorized in the United States, developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, use the same technology.

Existing vaccines are good at protecting against the original virus, but lab studies suggest that they may not work as well against the more contagious variants, especially against a mutation found in the African variant of South.

Pfizer said on January 26 that it was already working on booster shots that protect against variants of the coronavirus. Moderna said on January 25 that he would develop a new version of his COVID-19 shot to combat 501.Y.V2, the variant found in South Africa.

Scientists believe that the variant in South Africa helps escape antibodies and may reduce the effectiveness of current vaccines, was also detected in the variant found in the UK.

British pharmaceutical giant GSK already had a stake in CureVac, a German biotechnology company specializing in mRNA technology that went public in August 2020.

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“This new collaboration builds on our existing relationship with CureVac and means that together we will combine our scientific expertise in mRNA and vaccine development to advance and accelerate the development of new COVID-19 vaccine candidates”, Dame Emma Walmsley , Managing Director of GSK, said.

GSK will also support the manufacture of up to 100 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine already developed by CureVac, called CVNCoV, in 2021.

CVNCoV is in the advanced clinical trials phase.

GSK and Curevac said they plan to develop mRNA vaccines to protect against other diseases that also cause respiratory problems.

“Using GSK’s proven vaccine expertise, we are equipping ourselves to meet future health challenges with new vaccines,” said Franz-Werner Haas, CEO of CureVac.

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Originally published February 3, 2021 at 12:55 pm