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Vaxxas, a Brisbane-based clinical-stage biotechnology company commercialising a needle-free vaccination platform, has secured $3.2 million from the United States Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) to accelerate the advancement of its high-density microarray patch (HD-MAP) technology to administer a COVID-19 mRNA vaccine.
The funding has been awarded to Vaxxas after it was named a "concept stage" winner of BARDA’s $50 million Patch Forward Prize, a competition launched by BARDA to accelerate the commercialisation of microarray patch-based RNA vaccines for COVID-19, seasonal influenza and pandemic influenza.
The move comes on the heels of Vaxxas last year being awarded a US Government contract worth US$28.5 million ($43 million) to conduct a bird flu vaccine trial in Queensland and Victoria in the largest Phase 1 clinical study to date for the company.
In the latest project, Vaxxas is working with The University of Queensland’s mRNA research and manufacturing BASE facility, a co-applicant on the Vaxxas application, to advance the project this year.
“We're honoured to have our world-leading microarray patch technology chosen to be part of this important BARDA-led public health initiative to accelerate new vaccine technologies,” says Vaxxas CEO David Hoey.
“We’re excited about the potential for our technology to play an important role in effectively protecting populations against dangerous respiratory infectious diseases such as influenza and COVID-19.”
Vaxxas is currently partnering with BARDA on the $43 million IND-enabled Phase I clinical study involving 258 participants for a pre-pandemic influenza vaccine.
The company also has been progressing its work in mRNA vaccines through a $6.4 million project funded by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), focused on developing Vaxxas’ needle-free vaccination platform to overcome frozen storage requirements of mRNA vaccines.
Early studies have shown the Vaxxas HD-MAP technology has the potential to overcome challenges faced by traditional needle and syringe delivery methods, including having the potential to reduce the need for cold-chain storage and distribution, which currently limits the availability of mRNA vaccines.
HD-MAP delivery also has the potential to enable self-administration, which could help increase the speed and breadth of vaccination, particularly in a future pandemic.
The $50 million BARDA Patch Forward Prize is among the largest incentive prizes in the history of the US Government and is part of the broader $5 billion Project NextGen initiative, which is focused on accelerating the development of next-generation vaccines and treatments through public-private collaborations.
Following the concept stage announcement, the program will be accepting submissions for its preclinical and clinical stages throughout this year and next year.
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