PDS Biotechnology Corporation (NASDAQ: PDSB) has signed a license agreement for Computationally Optimized Broadly Reactive Antigen (COBRA) antigens from the University of Georgia to use in the clinical development of PDS0202, the company’s universal flu vaccine candidate.
PDS Biotechnology enters agreement for COBRA antigens
CEO Frank Bedu-Addo said, “Our new agreement with the University of Georgia demonstrates the versatility and potential of our Versamune platform and advances our infectious disease pipeline. There are four types of seasonal influenza viruses, and a universal flu vaccine would eliminate the need to manufacture a new seasonal flu vaccine each year by providing robust, long-lasting protection against multiple subtypes of flu. We believe this is the next step in the advancement of novel infectious disease vaccines to address the nearly one billion cases of influenza worldwide annually.”
University of Georgia’s famous influenza expert Dr. Ted Ross designed the proprietary COBRA antigens that will be utilized in combination with Versamune in PDS0202 for universal protection by several influenza virus variants. The antigens were chosen after effective preclinical development work was conducted through the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Collaborative Influenza Vaccine Innovation Centers (CIVICs) initiative to advance PDS0202 development. PDS0202 takes advantage of Versamune ability to stimulate the immune system to produce large amounts of flu-specific neutralizing antibodies, CD8 killer T-cells, and CD4 helper, as well as long-acting memory T-cells, to provide broad and long-term protection against several flu variants potentially. Influenza is projected to cause about 290,000-650,000 respiratory death annually and 3-5 million severe illness cases.
COBRA antigens work in universal flu vaccine development
“The preclinical results of the combination of COBRA antigens and Versamune® were impressive, especially given the unique problem in developing a universal flu vaccine. Designing a vaccine that works for many influenza strains is the goal. We are excited to see how the PDS0202 – COBRA vaccine performs in human trials,” said Dr. Ross.
