Minas Gerais Federal University is developing new Covid-19 vaccine

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Provided everything goes as planned and the required investments are made, Brazil will have a domestic vaccine against the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) in 2022. The first national immunizer against Covid-19 is being developed by the Center of Technology in Vaccines (CT-Vacinas) of the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG).

The partnership agreement signed on February 4th between UFMG, the Minas Gerais state government and the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MCTI) may expedite vaccine production in the state, said professor Ana Paula Fernandes, one of the coordinators of CT-Vacinas.

She added that other partners may eventually be involved in the project, among them the Ezequiel Dias Foundation (FUNED), which owns a vaccine production plant.

Trials

Last year, tests were performed on animals (mice), when the CT-Vacinas team identified the antigens and their best composition. “We have performed animal tests, including genetically modified animals, required for this kind of tests,” said Fernandes.

The team is preparing to release its clinical trials, in line with the parameters set by the Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency (ANVISA), and will then begin human trials.

In order to determine the composition of the vaccine, toxicity tests will be conducted in two other models, which may be mice and rabbits, in order to meet the ANVISA requirements. “A pilot batch will be prepared for animal testing, which will also serve humans, and this formulation will be used for the clinical safety trial, immunogenicity and then protection trial,” said the UFMG professor.

Human trials are expected to be conducted later this year, but only if there are investments.

Independence

A total of R$5 million was spent on the project’s initial phase and on the alternatives sought by CT-Vacinas. Fernandes said that for phases 1 and 2 – animal trials – the value of investments ranges between R$15 million and R$30 million. The clinical stage, which involves human trials, is much more expensive, reaching around R$100 million.

The CT-Vacinas coordinator highlighted that this investment, although high, “is less than that what is being made for technology transfer from abroad. This process will indeed be a milestone, which can be replicated for other processes, so that Brazil will be independent in this strategic area,” she said.

According to her, all BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), with the exception of Brazil, “are able to absorb a considerable share of the global vaccine supply market,” which has a positive impact on their trade balances.

“Brazil has the expertise to do this. It needs to connect the links in the chain,” said the professor, who believes that UFMG’s project has this link.

She said that, unlike the Butantan Institute or Biomanguinhos, which are importing technology from abroad and producing in Brazil, CT-Vacinas is building a process from start to finish. “We are calling it a root vaccine.”

The coordinator said that the construction of this process and the mastery of these technology platforms are strategic, “and Brazil does not have this.” She recalls that all vaccines used in humans in Brazil are based on imported technologies.

Fernandes said that the CT-Vacinas team has already mastered the different platforms for vaccine production in viral vectors, but that this does not mean that in a single vaccine all these vectors, or a combination of them, will be used. At the moment, the professor says that two doses will be needed to immunize the population. “But it is a much easier vaccine to be produced, because its production system is not as complex as, for instance, the Coronavac”, being a simpler and more viable alternative.

Continuity

Ana Paula believes that over the coming months phase 1 and 2 clinical trials on immunogenicity and safety in humans will be completed, expecting phase 3 trials in humans to begin in the second half of the year. The new vaccine should be available next year.

The UFMG professor said that a vaccine of this kind will continue to be needed in Brazil because, “today, each passing day, we are more certain that we will probably need annual doses for the coronavirus, just as we do for influenza”.

The virus will continue to spread and strains will emerge, which will call for platforms that bypass the problem.

Sandra Almeida, UFMG’s Rector, has no doubts that the partnership with MCTI and the Minas Gerais government “will be crucial not only for the development of the coronavirus immunizer, but also for long-term vaccine research.”

“We need, more than ever, coordination between universities and state and federal public bodies to ensure continued investment.”

MCTI Minister Marcos Pontes said that the UFMG vaccine, developed with domestic technology, “is very important for the state [of Minas Gerais] and for the country and has great importance for Brazilian science.”

Source: Agencia Brasil