Rapid, Safe and Effective Vaccines for Global Health
There are significant obstacles facing vaccines in that they: Are slow to develop and manufacture; Often have sub-optimal levels, broadness and duration of protection; Use archaic growth systems and/or potentially toxic chemicals; Rely on exotic and unproven methods; Have limited flexibility/coverage; Require challenging storage conditions and distribution channels; Face skepticism in general population.
The SolaVAX™ method employs the use of a photochemical (riboflavin/vitamin B2) in combination with UV light in the UVA and UVB wavelength regions to carry out specific nucleic acid alterations in pathogens, rendering them non-infective while maintaining authentic antigen presentation.
Potential attributes of SolaVAX™ vaccines include:
• More complete antigen presentation (whole virus) to address emergent variants
• Already contains multiple virus strains/multiple antigen variants = multivalent
• Rapid manufacturing pivot to address emergent strains; not strain- or virus-dependent
• Feasibility of low cost, geographically distributed, local manufacturing to address global needs
• Does not rely on toxic inactivating chemicals that potentially compromise antigen conformation and add to manufacturing complexity
COVID-19
In preliminary experiments, SolaVAX™-CoV-2 vaccine-treated animals demonstrated:
• Dramatically decreased viral load
• Reduced lymphocytic infiltration and neutrophil accumulation
• Increased alveolar air space
The SolaVAX™-CoV-2 investigational vaccine is estimated to be 2k to 20k times more effective on a weight/weight basis of dose compared to other inactivation methods.
References
A Whole Virion Vaccine for COVID-19 Produced via a Novel Inactivation Method and Preliminary Demonstration of Efficacy in an Animal Challenge Model (https://www.mdpi.com/2076-393X/9/4/340)
Apparatus used to produce photo-inactivated vaccine candidates
