GeoVax Announces Presentation of Sudan Ebolavirus Vaccine Data at the American Society for Virology Annual Meeting
July 22 2021 - 9:00AM
via NewMediaWire -- GeoVax Labs, Inc. (Nasdaq: GOVX), a
biotechnology company specializing in developing human vaccines,
today announced the presentation of data from a study of its
preventive vaccine against Sudan Ebolavirus (SUDV). The
presentation titled “A single immunization of guinea pigs with a
modified vaccinia Ankara virus producing Sudan virus-like particles
protects from Sudan virus lethal challenge,” was delivered by
Dr. Delphine Malherbe of the Bukreyev Lab, Department of
Pathology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston,
Texas, during the Annual Meeting of the American Society for
Virology, being held virtually July 19-23.
In her talk, Dr. Malherbe discussed the preclinical efficacy
studies of GeoVax’s vaccine (MVA-SUDV-VLP), a novel vaccine
candidate for SUDV constructed on an MVA vector expressing two
immunogens (GP and VP40) derived from the Sudan virus. Upon
vaccination, these immunogens form Virus Like Particles (VLPs) in
the host, which in turn induce immunity against subsequent
infections with SUDV. Immunogenicity and efficacy of MVA-SUDV-VLP
were tested in a guinea pig lethal challenge model, in which a
single intramuscular dose of the GeoVax vaccine protected 100% of
animals challenged with a lethal dose of SUDV. A comparison
between prime and prime-boost vaccinations of guinea pigs with
MVA-SUDV-VLP showed that both regimens elicited SUDV-specific
binding and neutralizing antibody responses, and that the second
immunization enhanced these responses. Challenge of vaccinated
animals with guinea pig-adapted SUDV demonstrated a complete
protection against death and disease by the prime and the
prime-boost regimens. Importantly, there was no difference in
outcomes between the prime and the prime-boost vaccine regimens
thus demonstrating the efficacy of a single dose of MVA-SUDV-VLP.
This is the first report that a replication-deficient MVA vector
may confer full protection against SUDV after a single dose.
“The level of protection against Sudan virus we observed was
remarkable,” commented Alexander Bukreyev, PhD, Professor,
Department of Pathology, University of Texas Medical Branch,
Galveston, Texas.
David Dodd, GeoVax President and CEO, further commented, “The
presentation of data from this study further validates our platform
and approach to addressing Sudan virus, and we look forward to
advancing our vaccine to non-human primate testing.
Previously, our novel vaccine against Ebola virus achieved 100%
single-dose protection in a nonhuman primate lethal challenge model
and we have consistently validated our vaccine platform capability
against other infectious pathogens, resulting in vaccine candidates
that have demonstrated 100% preclinical protection in a single
dose, without the need for adjuvants. Such attributes are
critically important when developing vaccines against emergent
epidemic threats.”
About Sudan Ebolavirus
Sudan ebolavirus (SUDV) is one of six known viruses within the
genus Ebolavirus (Filoviridae family) and causes Ebola virus
disease in humans, with a fatality rate up to 73%. SUDV is rated by
the World Health Organization as a Risk Group 4 Pathogen. In the
United States, the NIH/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious
Diseases ranks SUDV as a Category A Priority Pathogen and the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention list it as a Category A
Bioterrorism Agent. SUDV typically appears in sporadic outbreaks
throughout Africa. The last SUDV outbreak took place in Uganda in
2012, killing 57% of people infected. The virus continues to pose a
potential public health and biodefense threat and there are
currently no licensed vaccines or therapeutics against the diseases
caused by SUDV.
About GeoVax
GeoVax Labs, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company
developing human vaccines against infectious diseases and cancer
using a novel patented Modified Vaccinia Ankara-Virus Like Particle
(MVA-VLP) based vaccine platform. On this platform, MVA, a large
virus capable of carrying several vaccine antigens, expresses
proteins that assemble into VLP immunogens in the person receiving
the vaccine. The production of VLPs in the person being vaccinated
can mimic virus production in a natural infection, stimulating both
the humoral and cellular arms of the immune system to recognize,
prevent, and control the target infection. The MVA-VLP derived
vaccines can elicit durable immune responses in the host similar to
a live-attenuated virus, while providing the safety characteristics
of a replication-defective vector.
GeoVax’s current development programs are focused on preventive
vaccines against COVID-19, HIV, Zika Virus, hemorrhagic fever
viruses (Ebola, Sudan, Marburg, and Lassa), and malaria, as well as
therapeutic vaccines against multiple cancers. The Company has
designed a preventive HIV vaccine candidate to fight against the
subtype of HIV prevalent in the commercial markets of the Americas,
Western Europe, Japan, and Australia; human clinical trials for
this program are managed by the HIV Vaccine Trials Network (HVTN)
with the support of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
GeoVax’s HIV vaccine is also part of a collaborative effort toward
a functional cure for HIV.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements regarding
GeoVax’s business plans. The words “believe,” “look forward to,”
“may,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “should,”
“plan,” “could,” “target,” “potential,” “is likely,” “will,”
“expect” and similar expressions, as they relate to us, are
intended to identify forward-looking statements. We have based
these forward-looking statements largely on our current
expectations and projections about future events and financial
trends that we believe may affect our financial condition, results
of operations, business strategy and financial needs. Actual
results may differ materially from those included in these
statements due to a variety of factors, including whether: GeoVax
is able to obtain acceptable results from additional tests
of its preventive vaccine against Sudan Ebolavirus (SUDV),
can realize potential benefits from the patent protection it has
received, GeoVax’s vaccines can provoke the desired immune
responses, and those vaccines can be used effectively as a primary
or booster to other vaccines, GeoVax’s viral vector technology
adequately amplifies immune responses to cancer antigens, GeoVax
can develop and manufacture its vaccines with the desired
characteristics in a timely manner, GeoVax’s vaccines will be safe
for human use, GeoVax’s vaccines will effectively prevent targeted
infections in humans, GeoVax’s vaccines will receive regulatory
approvals necessary to be licensed and marketed, GeoVax raises
required capital to complete vaccine development, there is
development of competitive products that may be more effective or
easier to use than GeoVax’s products, GeoVax will be able to enter
into favorable manufacturing and distribution agreements, and other
factors, over which GeoVax has no control.
Further information on our risk factors is contained in our
registration statement on Form S-1 and the periodic reports on Form
10-Q and Form 10-K that we have filed and will file with the SEC.
Any forward-looking statement made by us herein speaks only as of
the date on which it is made. Factors or events that could cause
our actual results to differ may emerge from time to time, and it
is not possible for us to predict all of them. We undertake no
obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement,
whether as a result of new information, future developments or
otherwise, except as may be required by U.S. federal securities
law.
Contact:
GeoVax Labs, Inc.
investor@geovax.com
678-384-7220
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