Congressman Holt congratulates Vaxinnate for BARDA award to develop next generation of flu vaccines

Apr 22 2011

U.S. Congressman Rush Holt (R-12^th) visited the headquarters of VaxInnate Corporation today, where he congratulated the biotechnology company on having received a U.S. government contract to fund development of the next generation of flu vaccines and called for more technology investments to improve the health of all Americans.

“We salute Congressman Holt for his leadership in promoting innovation in biotechnology and congratulate VaxInnate on this important milestone.”

The contract, worth up to $196 million over five years, was awarded to VaxInnate by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), to fund the development of seasonal and pandemic flu vaccines using recombinant technology.

In a press conference held at VaxInnate's Cranbury headquarters, Rep. Holt said it was gratifying to know that groundbreaking scientific research and development are taking place in Central New Jersey. He pointed out that continued investment in innovative research is an investment in the health of all Americans and a top priority. Rep. Holt noted that VaxInnate's modern means of producing flu vaccines hold the promise of displacing current egg-based manufacturing.

Rep. Holt's words were reinforced by Debbie Hart, President of BioNJ. "This award is an excellent example of government support of economic development at its best, where technology, innovation and the economy advance together. With access to capital a continuing challenge, both the State and federal government need to help fill that gap," Hart said. "We salute Congressman Holt for his leadership in promoting innovation in biotechnology and congratulate VaxInnate on this important milestone."

"We thank Congressman Holt both for his tireless efforts to represent the life sciences sector in the 12^th District and for being a champion of innovation," said Thomas Hofstaetter, PhD, President and CEO of VaxInnate. "This contract, which is an endorsement of VaxInnate's proprietary technology, represents another significant milestone for us as a company. We look forward to working with BARDA to develop the next generation of vaccines to prevent seasonal and pandemic flu."

VaxInnate produces highly immunogenic vaccines using a unique technology platform that effectively activates both the innate and adaptive immune systems. This technology - based upon recombinant expression of fusion molecules that combine the vaccine antigen with a potent immune stimulator, the toll-like receptor 5 (TLR-5) agonist, flagellin - conveys significant potency, speed, cost and capacity advantages.

In fact, VaxInnate's technology makes it possible to produce hundreds of millions of vaccine doses in as little as three to four months. In a pandemic, the speed and capacity of this technology makes it possible to supply the "first" and "last" doses of vaccine needed by the nation in several months. This is a significant improvement compared to time necessary to produce flu vaccines in either eggs or cell culture; using eggs or cell culture, only first doses of vaccine can be produced in this same time frame.