Human trials set for Antigen's bird flu vaccine
Toronto-based Generex Biotechnology Corp., parent company of Worcester-based Antigen Express Inc., has entered into an agreement with the Lebanese-Canadian Hospital in Beirut, Lebanon to conduct human clinical trials of Antigen’s synthetic avian influenza vaccine.
Antigen Express designed the vaccine using its proprietary platform technology of synthetically copying proteins from viruses and has been conducting pre-clinical studies since 2004. Dr. Alexander Abdelnoor, a professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the American University of Beirut, will also be participating as a consultant for the trials.
The bird flu vaccine being developed by Antigen Express is based upon simple peptide-synthesis technology and can thus be manufactured rapidly, easily, and at inexpensive cost, the company notes. This is in sharp contrast to traditional egg-based vaccines that rely on biological systems for vaccine production, making their availability to at-risk populations during a pandemic extremely limited. The preclinical studies conducted with the synthetic vaccine suggest that it may be used with more traditional vaccines to extend their utility as well as to prevent mortality associated with bird flu infection when used alone.
Antigen Express is also working on vaccines for breast cancer and diabetes, according to Delores Naney, spokesman for Generex. While Generex is based in Canada, it is traded in the U.S.
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