Emergex Awarded £490,525 UK Aid Grant by the Department of Health and Social Care to Advance Synthetic T cell Vaccine Candidate for Chikungunya Virus
Summary
Professor Thomas Rademacher, Founderat Emergex Vaccines, commented: “We arepleasedto have been awarded this grantthat willallow us to contribute to theglobal fight againstmosquito-borne infections and recognize that the UK government and its advisers see the potential of our innovative technology. Emergex is developingnext-generationpriming T cell adaptive vaccines, which cover a range of viral and intracellular bacteria includingCOVID-19,dengue, influenza, etc.,are designed to deliver broad and long-lasting immunity by preventing infected cells from progressing to a productive infection.” Sajid Javid, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care of the United Kingdom, said:“I am delighted that these innovative projects – tackling serious and deadly diseases - will receive the funding they need to take their research to the next stage.” Chikungunya (Primary and Chronic) virus, is a potentially severe mosquito-borne infection of the Togaviridae viral family, characterized by fever and joint pain, with a high public health burden of over 1 billion a year in reported cases in widespread endemic regions (the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa). Emergex is developing a pipeline of innovative Priming CD8+ T cell Adaptive Vaccine candidates, which have the potential to deliver rapid, broad (mutation-agnostic), and long-lasting (decades-long) immunity to reduce serious illness associated with infectious diseases. Other programmes in development include vaccine candidates for universal (pandemic) influenza, hand foot and mouth disease, a hepatitis B therapeutic, and a yellow fever booster. Added benefits of Emergex’s synthetic Priming T cell Adaptive Vaccine candidates include the potential for stability at ambient temperatures, which should avoid the need for, and resource limitations associated with the cold-chain and transportation to endemic regions.