TheRecombinant COVID-19 Vaccine(sf9 cells)- Coviccine developed by the West China Hospital of Sichuan University has got approved for emergency use, contributing to the prevention and control of COVID-19 in China and the world as well. This is the first recombinant novel coronavirus protein vaccine produced by means of the insect cell technology in China, and also the first COVID-19 vaccine approved for emergency use led by a Chinese university.
The research at the State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital has been approved and funded by the State Council's vaccine research and development office, and is one of the five state-funded technical routes for COVID-19 vaccine research and development. The research team has received strong support from relevant central ministries and departments such as the Ministry of Education, leaders of Sichuan province and Chengdu city, and relevant departments of the High-Tech Industrial Development Zone.
The insect cell-expressed Recombinant COVID-19 Vaccine (Sf9 cell) - Coviccine is the first Chinese COVID-19 vaccine with a clinical trial conducted in a developed country. Additionally, in response to the continuous emergence of new variants such as Omicron, WestVac Biopharma has developed the Recombinant COVID-19 Vaccine (Sf9 cell) and precisely designed the structure-based subunit vaccine antigen, which can self-assemble into stable protein particles. The vaccine is produced in scale using the internationally advanced insect cell production technology combined with WGa01 (MF59-like adjuvant), an oil-in-water emulsion adjuvant that can induce a stronger immune response. The data showed that the vaccine can inhibit the neutralizing antibody of Gamma, Beta, Delta, Omicron and other variant strains up to tens of thousands of levels, suggesting that the vaccine is a universal novel coronavirus vaccine against a variety of variants.
The West China Hospital supported the industrialization of the vaccine, and established the Westvac Biopharma Co., Ltd. in Chengdu High-TechIndustrial DevelopmentZone to promote the industrialization of the vaccine. As an innovative biopharmaceutical enterprise integrating vaccine research and development, production and sales, ithas been listed as one of the unicorns in China for two consecutive years from 2021-2022.
