BiondVax

BiondVax Pharmaceuticals Ltd.
Public
Traded as NASDAQ: BVXV
Industry Vaccines
Founded 2003 (2003)
Founder Ron Babecoff
Headquarters Ness Ziona, Israel
Number of employees
 16 (2016)
Website www.biondvax.com

BiondVax Pharmaceuticals Ltd. is a biopharmaceutical company developing a universal influenza vaccine called M-001. BiondVax is a publicly traded company, listed on the NASDAQ. The vaccine technology was invented in the 1990s at the Weizmann Institute of Science in the laboratory of Ruth Arnon, and was licensed to BiondVax in 2003. As of March 2018, the lead compound was in Phase II, and the company was planning a Phase III trial.

History

The company's approach to developing a universal influenza vaccine was invented at the Weizmann Institute; it was the subject of Tamar Ben-Yedidia's PhD research under the supervision of Ruth Arnon. Ron Babecoff approached Weitzmann in 2002 looking for opportunities to develop and in 2003 his startup, BiondVax, licensed the patents that Yeda, the technology transfer subsidiary of Weizmann, had filed on the vaccine candidate. BiondVax took space in the Weizmann Science Park in Ness Ziona, Israel, Babecoff took the role of CEO, and Ben-Yedidia became the CSO.[1][2][3]

The company's candidate universal flu vaccine, Multimeric-001 (M-001), is a mixture of 9 peptides, each no longer than 22 amino acids, that are epitopes of HA, NP and M1 proteins of both Type-A and Type-B influenza viruses.[4]

BiondVax was listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange in 2007[5] and started trading on NASDAQ in 2015.[6] Like many early-stage biotech companies its stock fluctuated wildly; BiondVax's stock price shot up in response to the perceived threat of the 2009 swine flu pandemic.[7]

The company was in Phase II trials by 2011.[7] BiondVax was developing M-001 first as a primer to make standard flu vaccines more effective, and secondarily as a vaccine.[8]

In 2017, the company voluntarily delisted from the Tel Aviv exchange in favor of the NASDAQ.[9] Earlier that year, the fund of Check Point's Co-founder and Chairman Marius Nacht became BiondVax's largest shareholder.[10] In 2017 it also obtained a €20 million interest-free loan from European Investment Bank, to be paid in three tranches depending on BiondVax hitting defined milestones, with the last one being approval to start a Phase III trial of its lead candidate.[11] The company used the new funds to start building a manufacturing facility in Jerusalem and to do further drug development work.[12][13]

As of March 2018, M-001 was still in Phase II trials and the company was planning Phase III trials.[4]

In March 2018 Scott Gottlieb said that approval of a universal flu vaccine was years in the future.[14] Other groups pursuing similar products at that time included Sanofi which had recently acquired Protein Sciences and its candidate, Johnson & Johnson, Vaccitech, Inovio Pharmaceuticals, and several government and academic labs.[4][14]

References

  1. ↑ Weinreb, Gali (28 July 2013). "Yeda earns $50-100m annually". Globes.
  2. ↑ "Prosepectus". BiondVax via SEC Edgar. February 2, 2016.
  3. ↑ "In conversation with Ron Babecoff". BioTuesdays.com. October 14, 2014. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 Halford, Bethany (2018-03-12). "In search of a universal flu vaccine". Chemical & Engineering News.
  5. ↑ Weinreb, Gali (June 12, 2007). "Biotech cos succeed in recent TASE offerings". Globes.
  6. ↑ "BiondVax Pharmaceuticals Ltd. (BVXV) IPO". NASDAQ. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  7. 1 2 Dichek, Bernard (23 August 2011). "Can a Hollywood horror movie influence drug development?". Nature Biotechnology Blog: Trade Secrets.
  8. ↑ Liu, Angus (June 19, 2017). "BiondVax nabs €20M loan to advance universal flu vaccine". FiercePharma.
  9. ↑ Globes correspondent (31 August 2017). "Universal flu vaccine co BiondVax to delist from TASE". Globes.
  10. ↑ Globes correspondent (2 January 2017). "Marius Nacht fund invests NIS 10.9m in BiondVax". Globes.
  11. ↑ "Press release: Israel: EIB supports Late-Stage Development and Production of BiondVax's Universal Flu Vaccine Candidate". European Investment Bank. 19 June 2017.
  12. ↑ Macdonald, Gareth (18 July 2017). "BiondVax leases site for universal flu vaccine plant in Israel". Biopharma Reporter.
  13. ↑ Palmer, Eric (March 30, 2017). "Israeli biotech BiondVax gets government help to build flu vaccine manufacturing facility". FiercePharma.
  14. 1 2 Sagonowsky, Eric (March 14, 2018). "After a rough season, FDA chief Gottlieb says 'holy grail' flu shot is years off". FiercePharma.
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