Sanofi Fast-Tracks Timeline for Development of COVID-19 Vaccine

After it lagged behind its competitor in initiating clinical trials, Sanofi, a French drugmaker, recently announced it is planning to speed up a timeline for its development of a vaccine. The said plan, according to the firm, could gain the nod of regulatory authorities, probably in the first half of next year.

The company, together with its partner in the project, GlaxoSmithKline, initially estimated the availability of a vaccine in the latter half of 2021 at the earliest.

Like its other competitors in the race for COVID-19 vaccine, this French company is anticipating to push through with the project. M.I.T. immunologist, Padmini Pillai said, still, such as speeding up and extreme gauge of production of vaccine is entirely unprecedented, and the future not known.

Mainly, the "Sanofi-GSK vaccine" comprises a lab-synthesized version of the "spike" protein of COVID-19, which the partnering companies explained, "decorates the virus's surface" and is critical to its capability of entering host cells.

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The 'Recombinant Vaccine'

Called the "recombinant vaccine," this COVID-19 remedy is formulated as well, with one of the patented adjuvants of GSK. These are compounds that can boost the immune response of the body "to a foreign onslaught," in theory enhancing a particularly given vaccine's enduring power.

A combination of Phase I and II clinical trial for the Sanofi-GSK vaccine, initially slated for December this year, according to reports, will now start in September 2020. The main objective, reportedly, is to have a fully licensed "recombinant vaccine" by June next year.

During media briefings early this week, the two companies both expressed enthusiasm and confidence in their partnership, not to mention the potential to provide a "successful vaccine."

The history of Sanofi with developing vaccine runs deep. Its lines of production are accountable for hundreds of millions of doses of vaccines for flu every year.

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Sanofi into Development of Other Vaccines

Sanofi Pasteur Executive Vice President Thomas Triomphe said as all attention is focused on the "prevention of infectious disease through the use of vaccines," this is a specific "moment in time" where everyone is called upon to look for groundbreaking ways for the public health's protection.

In addition, Sanofi is also into the development of a separate series of vaccine candidates, in collaboration with an American therapeutics company, Trans Bio, on a slightly accelerated or fast-tracked timeline.

This yet another series of recipes, according to the French firm, "Is based on mRNA technology," a method is currently employed by some of the competitors of the company, which include Moderna, and an alliance between Fosun Pharma, BioNTech and Pfizer.

According to Pillai, "Such mRNA vaccines are new." At present, he elaborated, none has attained clearance for human use.

However, they have still been promoted and pushed as a potential enhancement on their antecedents, more particularly for their scalability and flexibility.

Meanwhile, vaccine researcher and Yale Institute for Global Health Director Saad Omer said, Sanofi, a firm with remarkable "muscle memory of manufacturing and distribution of vaccines at a large scale" poised to speed up innovative formulations of vaccines, like the ones with mRNA.

This does not mean, though, Dr. Omer emphasized, that "we should not be careful" about the projection of timelines in terms of developing vaccines, especially for COVID-19.

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