A Perth clinical research company has been selected to undertake a trial of one of the first vaccines in the world to demonstrate safety and immune response against COVID-19.
Linear Clinical Research today announced that it will conduct a human trial of a ground-breaking vaccine candidate which is being developed to help the body produce antibodies to fight the deadly coronavirus which causes COVID-19 disease.
The vaccine candidate COVID-19 S-Trimer has been developed by China-based, global biotechnology company Clover Biopharmaceuticals.
Linear’s Chief Executive Officer Jayden Rogers said the COVID-19 S-Trimer vaccine showed immense potential and securing the trial was a major coup for Australia.
“This is one of the most prominent trials globally and involves some of the most renowned vaccines companies,” said Mr Rogers.
Mr Rogers said the COVID-19 S-Trimer vaccine trial was significant because:
- Clover was one of the first companies to start developing a vaccine – Clover started working on a COVID-19 vaccine in January this year. Clover’s access to early COVID-19 data and reagents made them one of the first companies to develop a vaccine which targets a protein that the virus needs to enter host cells.
- Collaboration with renowned global vaccine development experts – the program expanded to include innovations from GSK (UK), Dynavax (US) and Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI Switzerland).
- One of the first to make it to human trials – there are more than 60 candidate COVID-19 vaccines in development around the world, but only a few are entering early clinical trials in human volunteers.
Mr Rogers said what made the vaccine so promising, was Clover’s Trimer-Tag© technology platform, which is used to create the protein-based COVID-19 S-Trimer vaccine that aims to promote production of antibodies against the coronavirus Spike (S) protein.
“Clover’s Trimer-Tag© platform has already been used in a range of clinical studies and has also been utilised for the development of vaccines for other RNA-based viruses such as influenza, RSV and HIV,” said Mr Rogers.
“Combined with extensive preclinical research and commercial-scale manufacturing capabilities, COVID-19 S-Trimer is one of the most exciting vaccine programs globally for the current coronavirus pandemic.”
The Phase 1 clinical trial of the COVID-19 S-Trimer vaccine is planned to involve healthy adult and healthy elderly trial participants. Linear will be seeking volunteers to participate in the study within the next 2 months.
If successful, a larger Phase 2b/3 clinical trial involving thousands of people around the world would be conducted immediately, and it is hoped that the COVID-19 vaccine will be widely available upon confirmation of its safety and efficacy.
“The fight against COVID-19 requires a global effort bringing together the best science and innovation,” said Mr Rogers.
“We are fortunate to be one of the few countries in the world to still be offering functional clinical trial facilities because we do not have large volumes of COVID-19 cases as compared to other parts of the world,” he said.
“Linear was awarded the study because of our extensive experience testing the world’s latest medical breakthroughs combined with its industry leading digital innovations.
“It also reflects Linear’s long term investment in China and on-going relationships with the pioneers of China’s global biopharmaceutical industry.”
“We are thrilled to get the opportunity to bring our world class clinical trials capabilities to support Clover and their global collaborators in one of the most promising COVID-19 vaccine programs in the world.”
Joshua Liang, Chief Strategy Officer at Clover Biopharmaceuticals and co-inventor of the COVID-19 S-Trimer vaccine said given the status of the current pandemic, the successful clinical development of our COVID-19 vaccine program is of utmost importance not only to Clover, but also the world.
“Australia is a prime strategic destination for first-in-human Phase I clinical studies, and we are proud to partner with Linear, one of the top research units in the world,” said Mr Liang.
Linear Clinical Research is Australia’s leading clinical trials facility, wholly owned by the Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research.
About Linear Clinical Research
Linear Clinical Research is a global leader in early stage clinical trials and subsidiary of the Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research. Linear operates one of Australia’s most active early phase trial centres and is considered a leader in clinical trial innovation and data systems. It has conducted over 300 early phase trials which includes one of the most active cancer trial teams in the Asia-Pacific. Regulatory standards in Australia mean that clinical trials conducted at Linear are completed six months faster than in the US and up to half the cost. The Harry Perkins Institute was set up 20 years ago to conduct research on the major diseases affecting adults and to enable scientists and specialists to work together to make medical breakthroughs and combat disease. To find out more visit www.linear.org.au
About Clover Biopharmaceuticals
Clover Biopharmaceuticals is a global, clinical-stage, research-based biotechnology company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing transformative biologic therapies, with a focus on oncology and autoimmune diseases, as well as viral vaccines. Having raised more than US$ 100 million in total capital since 2016, Clover is utilizing its proprietary Trimer-Tag© technology platform to develop novel biologics targeting trimerization-dependent pathways. Additionally, Clover is leveraging its in-house GMP biomanufacturing capabilities to support large-scale production of its biologic therapies. For more information, please visit: www.cloverbiopharma.com.
