PR96461

PROVIDENCE, R.I., June 11, 2022 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

EpiVax, Inc. ("EpiVax") announces that it has developed VennVax, a smallpox

vaccine candidate that is predicted to be highly effective against monkeypox (

https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=3564103-1&h=38035764&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sciencedirect.com%2Fscience%2Farticle%2Fpii%2FS0264410X10015653%3Fvia%253Dihub&a=a+smallpox+vaccine+candidate+that+is+predicted+to+be+highly+effective+against+monkeypox

). The development of this vaccine was funded by the National Institutes of

Health (SBIR grant #R43AI058376). The company is looking for a strategic

partner with funding and experience in advanced preclinical development and

clinical trials to move this "Epitope-Driven Vaccine" into clinical trials.

Although the U.S. government has stockpiled two vaccinia virus vaccines for

both smallpox and monkeypox, a next generation subunit vaccine may offer a

dose-sparing strategy that increases availability of one of the vaccines and

avoids safety risks of the other.

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/542055/EpiVax_Logo.jpg

Experts in T cell biology, EpiVax scientists have been developing novel T cell

epitope vaccines since the company was founded in 1998. This vaccine is named

VennVax because it was developed by defining conserved elements between

vaccinia (the cowpox virus) and smallpox (the disease that vaccinia vaccine

protects against). These conserved elements (T cell epitopes) are also

conserved in monkeypox. Initial studies in HLA transgenic mice demonstrated

100% survival rates.

EpiVax has also marked progress this year on a new vaccine for avian influenza

that incorporates an immune-engineered H7N9 Hemagglutinin (HA) vaccine antigen,

which increased the immunogenicity and efficacy in mouse models. Publication

forthcoming in an upcoming 2022 issue of Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics. (

https://www.tandfonline.com/journals/khvi20 ) This follows promising results

for a Q Fever T cell vaccine candidate (

https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=3564103-1&h=2176000915&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.frontiersin.org%2Farticles%2F10.3389%2Ffimmu.2022.901372%2Ffull%3F%26utm_source%3DEmail_to_authors_%26utm_medium%3DEmail%26utm_content%3DT1_11.5e1_author%26utm_campaign%3DEmail_publication%26field%3D%26journalName%3DFrontiers_in_Immunology%26id%3D901372&a=promising+results+for+a+Q+Fever+T+cell+vaccine+candidate

) published in Frontiers in Immunology in May 2022, in collaboration with

Massachusetts General Hospital Scientists.

Dr. Lenny Moise, Director of Vaccine Research at EpiVax had this to say on the

potential of T cell vaccine technology: "We are optimistic about the future for

vaccines designed to exploit T cell immunity. Our T cell-directed smallpox

vaccine shows it's possible to fully protect against disease without inducing

an antibody response. And when antibodies are needed, whole antigens can be

sculpted to trigger stronger T cell responses for increased vaccine efficacy."

About EpiVax:

EpiVax is a biotechnology company with expertise in T cell epitope prediction,

immune modulation, and rapid vaccine design. EpiVax's screening toolkits for

therapeutics and vaccines are employed in advancing the research of a global

roster of companies.

For more information, visit www.epivax.com .

Press Contact:

Katie Porter, Business Development Manager

EpiVax

kporter@epivax.com

SOURCE: EpiVax Inc.