Intravacc today announced the appointment of Dr. Jan Groen as its Chief Executive Officer, effective 1 May 2020.

Bilthoven, The Netherlands – 07.00 CET, April 3, 2020 -

Intravacc, one of the leading translational research and development vaccine institutes with an extensive track record developing viral and bacterial vaccines from discovery to lead concept to clinical phase I/II, today announced the appointment of Dr. Jan Groen as its Chief Executive Officer, effective 1 May 2020.

Dr Groen has many years of experience in Life Sciences and Biotech and holds a PhD degree in medical microbiology. Dr. Groen has held numerous executive management and board mandates in international profit and nonprofit companies and organizations. He built several successful commercial biotech companies in Europe and the US, and raised over $150 million for private and public companies.

Mr Nico Oudendijk, General Director of Intravacc said: “With Dr. Groen, we have found the right person to take Intravacc into the new phase of an independent vaccine research organization”.

Dr Groen stated: “I am delighted to join Intravacc, an institute with a tremendous track record in vaccinology. Developing and improving vaccines remains vitally important in the world today and with its unique one-stop facilities, Intravacc can be at the forefront of the (co)development of a coronavirus vaccine. I look forward to working together with the professional and highly committed staff to develop Intravacc into a successful organistation within the vaccine industry”.

About Intravacc

Intravacc is one of the leading institutes for translational vaccinology. As an established R&D organization with over 100 years’ experience in the development and optimization of vaccines and vaccine technologies. Intravacc has transferred its technology all over the world. Its track record includes technology transfer of oral polio, measles, DPT, Hib and influenza vaccines. The institute has state-of-the-art research and production (GMP) facilities; its aim is to substantially reduce development risks and costs of new vaccines in order to contribute to global health and equity in access to vaccines worldwide. For more information please visit www.intravacc.nl

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NOTE TO EDITORS

For more information, contact Mirjam Hartman, press officer: mirjam.hartman@intravacc.nl tel +31 6 11596994; www.intravacc.nl

Intravacc today announced the establishment of Intravacc B.V. This is an important step in the anticipated privatization of Intravacc and the sale of its activities to a private party.

In May 2018, the Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport announced the start of the privatization process of the activities of Intravacc a leading organisation in the field of vaccines research & development. As the privatization is progressing, the buyer of Intravacc is expected to be announced in the second quarter of 2019.

Preparing for the privatization, Intravacc B.V., a private company with limited liability, was established today. Once the shares of Intravacc are sold to the selected buyer, Intravacc B.V. will become operational and all assets, staff, intellectual property and contracts & agreements will be transferred to the new entity. This ensures a smooth transition of the business and the knowledge base of Intravacc with no interruption in servicing current customers.

Intravacc and CDBIO today announced that they have signed a research and license agreement to further develop a vaccine against Meningococcal type B based on Intravacc’s proprietary Nonamen^® vaccine technology.

Both parties will collaborate to tailor the Nonamen^® concept for the Chinese market. Following the successful completion of this phase, CDBIO will receive a license to further develop and commercialize the vaccine.

Intravacc’s unique Nonamen^® technology offers a broad panel of PorA proteins inserted in so called Outer membrane vesicles (OMV) expected to induce protection against the Meningococcal B (MenB) disease. Furthermore, the Nonamen^® technology can be included in a Meningitis combination vaccine.

Under the agreement, both parties will collaborate to establish the development of an efficacious vaccine against prevalent Men B serotypes in China.

“We are very happy to partner with CDBIO and to be able to expand the global reach of our Nonamen technology. We trust this will help to prevent the occurrence of Men B in China considerably”, said Mr Nico Oudendijk, General Director of Intravacc.

Intravacc and BCHT have entered into a non-exclusive license agreement for the development of a Hib conjugate vaccine within the People’s Republic of China.

Intravacc and Changchun BCHT Biotechnology Co today announced that they have entered into a non-exclusive license agreement towards the development ofa Haemophilus influenzae Type B (Hib) Conjugate Vaccine within the People’s Republic of China. By combining their strengths, the two parties can together lower the incidence of this vaccine preventable disease in China.

Through this agreement, BCHT obtained Intravacc’s unique Hib conjugate technology to further develop, produce and sell the vaccine. The vaccine consists of a Hib polysaccharide (poly-ribosylribitol phosphate, PRP) coupled to tetanus toxoid that has shown to be effective in preventing the disease. The Intravacc Hib vaccine technology has already been used for the vaccination of 100s of millions of children.The license agreement between Intravacc and BCHT will now help to reduce the incidence of Hib in Chinese children.

Of the 6 types of H influenzae, type B is responsible for more than 90% of systemic infections. Hib can cause serious illness like acute lower respiratory tract infection and bacterial meningitis. In China, for children under age of 5 years old, the incidence of meningitis caused by Hib was reported in a survey about 10.7/100 000 annually; 9.7% of these cases were fatal, and 21.4% of survivors suffered from neurological or psychological problems. The agreement between Intravacc and BCHT will help to bring this number down considerably.

‘’It’s great to hear that the innovative work of our researchers at Intravacc will contribute to the prevention of Hib in China. We are proud to partner with BCHT to prevent this disease.” said Mr Nico Oudendijk, General Director of Intravacc.

Intravacc has entered into a strategic partnership with TherapyX for the co-development of the world’s first prophylactic vaccine to provide lasting, protective immunity against Neisseria gonorrhoeae.

Intravacc is pleased to announce that it has entered into a strategic partnership with TherapyX for the co-development of NGoXIM^TM, the world’s first prophylactic vaccine against infection with Neisseria gonorrhoeae. This new vaccine is intended to enhance specific adaptive immune responses that provide lasting, protective immunity against N. gonorrhoeae. NGoXIM^TM is a combination of a sustained-release formulation of interleukin 12 (GneX12^TM) and bacterial outer membrane vesicles (OMV) formulated for mucosal delivery.

No effective gonorrhea vaccine is currently available and the disease is known to be acquired repeatedly with apparently no development of protective immunity from previous infection. The American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has listed antibiotic-resistant N. gonorrhoeae as one of the top three pathogens presenting “an immediate public health threat that requires urgent and aggressive action.” A recent WHO technical consultation on vaccines against sexually transmitted infections (2017) called for renewed efforts to develop a vaccine against gonorrhea. This partnership effort is a direct response to that call.

Under the terms of the partnership agreement, TherapyX will focus efforts on IND-enabling efficacy and toxicology studies in primates while Intravacc will be responsible for the discovery and development of OMVs with improved immunogenic properties and reduced toxicity. Financial terms were not disclosed.

“We are thrilled to partner with Intravacc” said Dr. Dominick L. Auci, Vice President for Research and Development at TherapyX. “They bring over 100 years of expertise in vaccines including novel OMV technology to this important project. We couldn’t be working with a more experienced, innovative and dedicated team”.

“We are delighted to be working with TherapyX” said Mr. Nico Oudendijk, General Director of Intravacc. “The IL-12 technology they bring into the project is key to develop an efficacious vaccine against this disease.”

New Delhi/Bilthoven, 29th May 2018: Life Sciences and Healthcare is a vital area of collaboration for India and the Netherlands.  Growing market opportunities in India, combined with the Netherlands’ strengths in Healthcare, create excellent opportunities for Indo-Dutch partnerships that address shared societal challenges with smart solutions. One of the key healthcare challenges that are being turned into Indo-Dutch collaborative solutions is vaccine delivery.

Serum Institute of India and Intravacc (part of the Netherlands Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sports) will jointly develop a novel delivery system for vaccines: Bioneedles. The Bioneedle, a tiny biodegradable mini implant, is a unique approach with ground breaking potential to transform vaccination campaigns, especially in low and middle income countries. The parties will develop Bioneedles for vaccines against measles and rubella. The Memorandum of Understanding confirming their collaboration was signed in the presence of Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Sigrid Kaag, Dutch Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, Bruno Bruins, Dutch Minister for Medical Care and Sports, Hans de Boer, CEO, Confederation of Netherlands Industry and Employers VNO-NCW, and H.E Alphonsus Stoelinga, Ambassador of the Netherlands to India, during the Netherlands Trade Mission to India last week. The signatories were Dr Suresh Jadhav, Executive Director, Serum Institute of India and Thijs Veerman, CEO, Intravacc.

“I am happy that this MoU was signed during The Netherlands Trade mission to India. The collaboration between SII and Intravacc is a good example of a cooperation in which companies from India and The Netherlands join forces to help improve health worldwide,” Bruno Bruins, Minister for Medical Care of The Netherlands was quoted as saying. 

Currently, vaccines are mostly administered through intramuscular or subcutaneous injection by needle and syringe. The use of needles however may cause pain and fear in vaccinated people, and  requires trained personnel, which is not always readily available in low and middle income countries.  Moreover, needle waste can be hazardous due to reuse and needle-stick injuries and, as a result, transmission of infectious diseases like hepatitis or HIV. To overcome these issues, numerous alternative vaccine administration devices and methods are currently being developed.

One of the most promising technologies in alternative vaccine delivery is a Bioneedle-based delivery device. “Vaccines play a critical role in public health globally- and for Intravacc, India is a vital market for partnerships in vaccine development. This project could potentially mark a major step towards vastly improved access to vaccines especially in low and middle income countries. We are very happy to be involved in such an innovative project with our Indian partner,” Thijs Veerman, CEO, Intravacc says.

Bioneedles are composed of a starch-like polymer, a product that is naturally degraded by the human body. The Bioneedle is administered by an implantation under the skin with an applicator. The Bioneedle matrix will degrade after implantation, which enables the release of the freeze dried vaccine. This reduces hazardous needle waste and results in a quick and pain-free delivery of the vaccine; it may even abolish the need for trained professionals to perform vaccinations – a huge benefit in developing countries where trained medical personnel is scarce. In addition, vaccines in Bioneedles are both freeze and heat stable and can be stored, transported and distributed outside any cold chain. Preclinical concepts of Bioneedles have been established with numerous vaccines, including tetanus, polio, influenza and hepatitis B. In all cases, Bioneedles filled with vaccine were able to induce potent systemic humoral immune responses against the respective antigen. Serum Institute of India and Intravacc will jointly develop Bioneedles for vaccines against Measles and Rubella. Intravacc will optimize the formulation of the vaccine and preparation of the Bioneedles and freeze drying process; Serum Institute of India will supply the MR vaccine. Both parties will search for a partner, preferably from India, for developing a suitable applicator device to administer the Bioneedles.
 

“We are now the world's largest vaccine manufacturer by number of doses produced. It is estimated that about 65% of the children in the world receive at least one vaccine manufactured by Serum Institute, saving millions of lives throughout the world,” says Dr Suresh Jadhav, Executive Director, Serum Institute of India. With this project we continue to build a sustainable, long-term partnership with Intravacc in our effort to manufacture affordable life-saving vaccines .”

All together this is a unique approach with ground breaking potential to transform vaccination campaigns, especially in the low and middle income countries.