Matica Biotechnology [Provided by Chabiotech]
Matica Biotechnology [Provided by Chabiotech]

Matica Biotechnology, a US subsidiary of Chabiotech, has joined forces with American biotech firm Vaxdom to co-develop an antiviral hybrid vaccine.

Matica Biotechnology announced Tuesday that it had signed a collaboration agreement with Vaxdom for the joint development of an antiviral hybrid vaccine. The project aims to advance Vaxdom's antigen-independent antiviral hybrid vaccine candidate into clinical trials.

Under the agreement, Matica Biotechnology will handle process development, analytical method development, and the production of non-GMP and cGMP clinical drug substances. The company plans to support the entire process — from early-stage process development through clinical manufacturing — drawing on its range of vector platforms, including retrovirus, lentivirus and adeno-associated virus.

Vaxdom, which focuses on developing non-invasive vaccines effective regardless of mutation type, said it valued Matica Biotechnology's infrastructure for handling the entire manufacturing process under one roof. Combining Vaxdom's technology with Matica Biotechnology's contract development and manufacturing organization facility in Texas, the two companies expect to carry out development, analytical testing and GMP production on a one-stop basis, accelerating the timeline to clinical entry.

The antigen-independent antiviral hybrid vaccine the two companies are working toward activates the body's immune system to treat and prevent disease, rather than manufacturing and injecting external antigens specific to a particular pathogen or cancer cell. The companies plan to develop a safe, nasally administered vaccine capable of preventing a wide range of conditions — from known and unknown viruses to lung cancer.

"Vaxdom's hybrid technology can be applied to the treatment and prevention of viral infections across a wide range of disease areas," said Paul Kim, chief executive of Matica Biotechnology. "We will provide full support to ensure this project successfully advances to the clinical stage."


silverpaper@heraldcorp.com