CureVac and Bayer have entered into an agreement for CureVac’s COVID-19 vaccine candidate CVnCoV, which is currently in development.
Under the terms of the agreement, German pharma company Bayer will support the further development, supply and key territory operations of CVnCoV.
This includes contributing its expertise and established infrastructure in areas such as clinical operations, regulatory affairs, pharmacovigilance, medical information and supply chain performance.
CureVac will remain the marketing authorisation holder for the product, while Bayer will support the company with specific country operations in the EU and ‘additional market’.
“We are very happy to join forces with Bayer, whose expertise and infrastructure will help us make our vaccine candidate CVnCoV even more rapidly available to as many people as possible,” said Franz-Werner Haas, chief executive officer of CureVac.
“Building on the positive data we have seen so far with CVnCoV, we now also have another strong partner on our side to get the vaccine to the people who need it following the receipt of the requisite regulatory approvals,” he added.
In November 2020, CureVac announced that CVnCoV, which uses mRNA-based technology, has up to 24 hours of stability when stored at room temperature.
CureVac also said that data for its potential COVID-19 vaccine suggests the vaccine remains stable and within defined specifications for at least three months when stored at a standard refrigerator temperature +2 °- +5 °C (+41°F).
The stability of CVnCoV was tested at the anticipated storage concentration and also stored at +5°C (+41°F) as well as below -60°C (-76°F), with the vaccine fulfilling all set release specifications at both temperatures after three months.
In a phase 1 study of CVnCoV, the investigational mRNA-based vaccine candidate induced strong binding and neutralising antibody responses.
The vaccine also demonstrated early indications of functional T cells, confirming activation of cellular immune response according to the German biotech company.
The European Commission (EC) has already secured 405 million doses of CVnCoV which will be delivered ‘if the vaccine has proven safe and effective against COVID-19’.
According to Reuters, the deal includes access to an initial 225 million doses of CureVac’s vaccine, with the EC eligible to purchase a further 180 million.