University of Maryland
School of Medicine Study Published in Vaccine Highlights First
Potential Effective Means for Preventing MERS Coronavirus
Outbreak
BALTIMORE and GAITHERSBURG, Md., April 30, 2014
(GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The University of Maryland School of Medicine
(UM SOM) and Novavax, Inc. (Nasdaq:NVAX) today announced that an
investigational vaccine candidate developed by Novavax against the
recently emerged Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus
(MERS-CoV) blocked infection in laboratory studies. UM SOM and
Novavax also reported that a vaccine candidate against Severe Acute
Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (SARS-CoV) developed by Novavax on
a similar platform also inhibited virus infection. Researchers
reported these findings in an article published in the April 13,
2014 issue of Vaccine1.
Historically, vaccine strategies for emerging
pathogens have been limited due to the sudden nature in which the
virus first appears and delayed by the protracted traditional
vaccine development process. This peer-reviewed manuscript
describes a novel method to rapidly develop vaccines against
previously unknown viruses, such as MERS-CoV, which appear suddenly
and cause severe illnesses in humans. The experimental vaccines,
which were tested in conjunction with Novavax' proprietary adjuvant
Matrix-M(TM), induced
neutralizing antibodies, or immune responses, that prevent viruses
from infecting cells.
"Our protein nanoparticle vaccine technology is
proving to have the potential to respond rapidly to emerging
viruses such as MERS-CoV and certain potential pandemic influenza
strains, addressing what are clearly urgent public health needs,"
said Gale Smith, Ph.D., Vice President of Vaccine Development at
Novavax. "Novavax will continue to evaluate this technology to
produce highly immunogenic nanoparticles for coronavirus,
influenza, and other human disease pathogens with the potential for
pandemic and sustained human to human transmission."
"The emergence of SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV
demonstrates how coronaviruses can spillover from animals into
humans at any time, causing lethal disease," said Matthew B.
Frieman, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Microbiology and Immunology
at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and corresponding
author on the publication. "Despite efforts to create a vaccine
against SARS-CoV, no vaccine candidate has, to date, been
successfully licensed for use. We have demonstrated that this novel
method rapidly creates SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV vaccines that induce
neutralizing antibodies in mice."
"The University of Maryland School of Medicine
investigators are continually working toward a better understanding
of the interactions between the human immune system and a variety
of known and novel harmful microbes," said E. Albert Reece, Vice
President of Medical Affairs, the University of Maryland and the
John Z. and Akiko Bowers Distinguished Professor and Dean,
University of Maryland School of Medicine. "This makes our faculty
poised to respond to emerging infectious diseases, such as
MERS-CoV, which threaten the health and wellbeing of the global
population."
The vaccine candidates were made using Novavax'
recombinant nanoparticle vaccine technology and based on the major
surface spike (S) protein, a SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV surface protein
responsible for attaching the virus to cells. Novavax previously
demonstrated that spike protein nanoparticles could protect animals
against lethal live challenge using the SARS-CoV virus2.
About MERS-CoV
MERS-CoV, first identified in 2012, is one of a
family of viruses with the potential to rapidly spread from a
benign infection of animals to cause severe disease in humans. In
2003, a previously unknown coronavirus called SARS-CoV caused an
outbreak that raised health alarms by infecting over 8,000
individuals and killing 775. According to the World Health
Organization, the novel MERS-CoV thus far has resulted in 107
deaths out of 345 infections, the majority of which are
characterized by severe illness and hospitalizations. Both diseases
were marked by a jump from animals to people and while SARS-CoV
spread more quickly in humans, MERS-CoV is proving to be more
deadly.
About University of Maryland
School of Medicine
Established in 1807, the University of Maryland
School of Medicine was the first public medical school in the
United States, and the first to institute a residency-training
program. The School of Medicine was the founding school of the
University of Maryland and today is an integral part of the
11-campus University System of Maryland. On the University of
Maryland's Baltimore campus, the School of Medicine serves as the
anchor for a large academic health center which aims to provide the
best medical education, conduct the most innovative biomedical
research and provide the best patient care and community service to
Maryland and beyond. www.medschool.umaryland.edu.
About Novavax
Novavax, Inc. (Nasdaq:NVAX) is a clinical-stage
biopharmaceutical company creating novel vaccines and vaccine
adjuvants to address a broad range of infectious diseases
worldwide. Using innovative proprietary recombinant protein
nanoparticle vaccine technology, the company produces vaccine
candidates to efficiently and effectively respond to both known and
newly emergent diseases. Novavax is involved in several
international partnerships, including collaborations with Cadila
Pharmaceuticals of India, LG Life Sciences of Korea, PATH and
recently acquired Isconova AB, a leading vaccine adjuvant company
located in Sweden. Together, Novavax' network supports its global
commercialization strategy to create real and lasting change in the
biopharmaceutical and vaccinology fields. Additional information
about Novavax is available on the company's website,
novavax.com.
About Vaccine
Vaccine is the
pre-eminent journal for those interested in vaccines and
vaccination. It is the official journal of The Edward Jenner
Society, The International Society for Vaccines and The Japanese
Society for Vaccinology. www.elsevier.com/locate/vaccine
References:
1. C. M. Coleman et al.
Purified coronavirus Spike protein nanoparticles induce coronavirus
neutralizing antibodies in mice. Vaccine. In
press, April 13, 2014.
2. Y. Liu
et al. Chimeric severe acute
respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) S glycoprotein and
influenza matrix 1 efficiently form virus-like particles (VLPs)
that protect mice against challenge with SARS-CoV, 2011; 29(38):
6606-6613.
Copies of the paper are available to credentialed
journalists upon request; please contact Elsevier's Newsroom
at newsroom@elsevier.com or +31-20-4853564.
Novavax Inc.,
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements herein relating to
the future of Novavax and the ongoing development of its vaccine
and adjuvant products are forward-looking statements. Novavax
cautions that these forward looking statements are subject to
numerous risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results
to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such
statements. These risks and uncertainties include those identified
under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Novavax Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013, filed with the
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to place considerable reliance on the forward-looking statements
contained in this press release. You are encouraged to read our
filings with the SEC, available at sec.gov, for a discussion of
these and other risks and uncertainties. The forward-looking
statements in this press release speak only as of the date of this
document, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any of
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uncertainties, including those referenced above. Investors,
potential investors, and others should give careful consideration
to these risks and uncertainties.
CONTACT: Media Contacts:
Christopher
Hardwick
(chardwick@som.umaryland.edu)
University of
Maryland School of Medicine
410-706-5260
Barclay A.
Phillips
SVP, Chief
Financial Officer and Treasurer
Novavax,
Inc.
240-268-2000
David Schull or
Andrea Flynn, Ph.D.
david.schull@russopartnersllc.com
andrea.flynn@russopartnersllc.com
Russo
Partners
212-845-4271
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The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely
responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the
information contained therein.
Source: Novavax, Inc. via Globenewswire
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