EMERYVILLE, Calif.,
July 27, 2020 /PRNewswire/
-- Amyris, Inc. (Nasdaq: AMRS), a leading synthetic
biotechnology company in Clean Health and Beauty markets and IDRI
(Infectious Disease Research Institute) today announce the signing
of a binding term sheet for a planned COVID-19 RNA (ribonucleic
acid) vaccine technology program. The program combines IDRI's
expertise in combating infectious diseases with Amyris'
fermentation platform technology, with the goal to create
semi-synthetic squalene-based adjuvants at scale. IDRI's RNA
vaccine platform is expected to offer significant differentiated
advantages over other RNA vaccines currently in development and
will be further enhanced by a scalable Amyris adjuvant.
The Critical Role of Adjuvants in Vaccines
Adjuvants
are added to vaccines as an excipient to enhance their
effectiveness and are typically sourced from shark-based squalene,
a non-sustainable and non-scalable resource. Amyris' fermentation
technology, which replaces shark-derived squalene with lower cost
sugarcane-derived squalene, is capable of delivering greater
availability facilitating access to adjuvants by large parts of the
population. Amyris' squalene is targeted to be functionally
identical to shark-based squalene and will be certified as such as
one of the last steps to commercialization.
"The combination of IDRI's leading RNA vaccine platform
technology combined with Amyris' sustainably-derived adjuvant has
the potential to lead on efficacy for a COVID-19 vaccine solution
and potentially play a major role in other vaccine solutions to
help mitigate potential future pandemics," said IDRI's CEO Dr.
Corey Casper. "Without adjuvants,
vaccines are not maximally effective, and a shortage of existing
shark-based adjuvant supply could prove devastating in the future,
underlining the importance of this anticipated partnership."
"We are pleased to partner with IDRI to combat COVID-19 and
deliver a significant breakthrough for vaccine technology into the
future," said John Melo, Amyris
President and CEO. "We believe synthetic biology can play a
significant role in scaling vaccines and therapies that meet the
needs of global health crises. Making the world's rarest chemistry
available and affordable has been Amyris' purpose since its
founding in 2003. Soon after its founding Amyris partnered with the
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and created an alternative supply
source through fermentation for artemisinin, a first-line treatment
for malaria that is still recommended by the World Health
Organization today. Many organizations are working toward a
COVID-19 vaccine solution, with uncertain outcomes. IDRI's
expertise in vaccines combined with our leading synthetic biology
platform presents a real opportunity to deliver the most scalable
and highest efficacy vaccine for COVID-19. We are focused on a
second-generation solution that is better performing and can
deliver a sustainable platform for vaccines to address future
pandemics. We expect first commercial supply of our leading
vaccine adjuvant by the end of this year and, assuming successful
trials, could have a successful vaccine platform next year."
Amyris and IDRI anticipate executing a comprehensive agreement
after which additional details of the proposed program will be
disclosed. In the interim, work on advancing the vaccine is
continuing to ensure accelerated time to market.
About Amyris
Amyris (Nasdaq: AMRS) is a science and
technology leader in the research, development and production of
sustainable ingredients for the Clean Health & Beauty and
Flavors & Fragrances markets. Amyris uses an impressive array
of exclusive technologies, including state-of-the-art machine
learning, robotics and artificial intelligence. Our ingredients are
included in over 3,000 products from the world's top brands,
reaching more than 200 million consumers. Amyris is proud to own
three consumer brands - all built around its No Compromise® promise
of clean ingredients: Biossance™ clean beauty skincare, Pipette™
clean baby skincare and Purecane™, a zero-calorie sweetener
naturally derived from sugarcane. For more information, please
visit www.amyris.com.
About IDRI
As a nonprofit global health organization,
IDRI (Infectious Disease Research Institute) takes a comprehensive
approach to combat infectious diseases and cancer, combining the
high-quality science of a research organization with the product
development capabilities of a biotech company to create vaccines
and therapeutics. IDRI combines passion for improving human health
with the understanding that it is not just what our scientists know
about disease, but what we do to change its course that will have
the greatest impact. Founded in 1993, IDRI has 55 employees
headquartered in Seattle with more
than 100 partners/collaborators around the world. For more
information, visit www.idri.org.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains
forward-looking statements, and any statements other than
statements of historical fact could be deemed to be forward-looking
statements. These forward-looking statements include, among other
things, statements regarding the signature of a definitive
agreement between Amyris and IDRI, advantages of IDRI's RNA
vaccine platform, enhancement of IDRI's RNA vaccine
platform resulting from Amyris' adjuvant, purpose of
adjuvants, potential qualities and relative cost of Amyris'
sugarcane-derived squalene as compared to shark-based squalene,
availability of shark squalene supply, capacity of Amyris' adjuvant
to facilitate people's access to vaccines, the degree of shared
functionality between shark-based squalene and Amyris'
sugarcane-derived squalene, the efficacy, performance,
sustainability and scalability of the IDRI vaccine platform when
combined with Amyris' sugarcane-derived squalene, impact of
squalene supply limitations on vaccine solutions, execution of a
comprehensive agreement, outcome of project to develop a
IDRI-Amyris vaccine solution, plans to commercialize the vaccine
solution, and ability of the project's vaccine solution to reach
the market on an accelerated basis. These statements are based on
management's current expectations, and actual results and future
events may differ materially due to risks and uncertainties,
including risks related to Amyris' liquidity and ability to fund
operating and capital expenses, risks related to potential delays
or failures in development, production and commercialization of
products, risks related to Amyris' reliance on third parties, and
other risks detailed from time to time in filings Amyris makes with
the Securities and Exchange Commission, including Annual Reports on
Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on
Form 8-K. Amyris disclaims any obligation to update information
contained in these forward-looking statements, whether as a result
of new information, future events, or otherwise.
Amyris, the Amyris logo, No Compromise, Biossance, Pipette, and
Purecane are trademarks or registered trademarks of Amyris, Inc. in
the U.S. and/or other countries.
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SOURCE Amyris, Inc.; Infectious Disease Research Institute