Catalent’s Zydis® Technology Used to Develop Thermo Stable and Cold-Chain Independent Vaccines
Somerset, N.J. – April 20, 2015 - Catalent, the leading global provider of advanced delivery technologies and development solutions for drugs, biologics and consumer health products, today announced that it has received a significant project grant as part of a consortium looking to evaluate, develop and manufacture thermo stable and cold-chain independent nano-pharmaceutical virosome-based vaccine candidates.
Currently, 90% of existing vaccines are cold-chain dependent, and the goal of the consortium is to develop a scalable manufacturing process for vaccines that are stable and temperature independent.
A total project fund of €5.3 million has been awarded as part of Horizon 2020, the European Union research and innovation framework program, with additional funding of up to €3.1 million from the Swiss State Secretariat Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) for the Swiss based consortium partners, resulting in a total project grant of €8.4 million (USD8.9 million). The EU Horizon 2020 project is named MACIVIVA, which stands for “Manufacturing process for Cold-chain Independent Virosome-based Vaccines”. The project duration is in total 3.5 years and brings together world class expertise in the field of virosome vaccines, manufacturing, spray drying, freeze drying and analytical techniques from the pharmaceutical industry.
Catalent’s Swindon, UK facility, the manufacturing hub of its Zydis fast-dissolve formulation technology, will receive a portion of the total fund with the balance being distributed amongst the other consortium partners: Mymetics SA (Switzerland), Mymetics BV (Netherlands); Chimera Biotech Gmbh (Germany); Upperton Ltd. (UK); and Bachem AG (Switzerland).
“Catalent is pleased to be part of this consortium of cross-industry partners bringing innovative technologies together to address a serious global issue in the over-reliance on the cold chain with existing vaccines,” commented Barry Littlejohns, Catalent’s President of Advanced Delivery Technologies. “Zydis is the world’s best-in-class, orally disintegrating tablet technology, and we believe our experience and expertise in this area can add substantially to the project as a whole. Because of the supply chain constraints, large populations are denied access to vaccines, so we, as a group, recognize the importance and potential of this work for global vaccine development.”
The MACIVIVA project will receive funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No 646122.
Behind the Buzz: Why Clinical Research Leaders Flock to SCOPE Summit
February 7th 2025In this episode, we meet with Micah Lieberman, Executive Conference Director for SCOPE Summit (Summit for Clinical Ops Executives) at Cambridge Innovation Institute. We will dive deep into the critical role of collaboration within the clinical research ecosystem. How do we bring together diverse stakeholders—sponsors, CROs, clinical trial tech innovators, suppliers, patients, sites, advocacy organizations, investors, and non-profits—to share best practices in trial design, program planning, innovation, and clinical operations? We’ll explore why it’s vital for thought leaders to step beyond their own organizations and learn from others, exchanging ideas that drive advancements in clinical research. Additionally, we’ll discuss the pivotal role of scientific conferences like SCOPE Summit in fostering these essential connections and collaborations, helping shape the future of clinical trials. Join us as we uncover how collective wisdom and cross-industry partnerships are transforming the landscape of clinical research.
Reaching Diverse Patient Populations With Personalized Treatment Methods
January 20th 2025Daejin Abidoye, head of solid tumors, oncology development, AbbVie, discusses a number of topics around diversity in clinical research including industry’s greatest challenges in reaching diverse patient populations, personalized treatment methods, recruitment strategies, and more.
Phase III Trial Data Show Subcutaneous Pembrolizumab as Noninferior to IV Keytruda
March 31st 2025Subcutaneous administration of pembrolizumab with chemotherapy demonstrated a nearly 50% reduction in patient chair and treatment room time while maintaining efficacy and safety endpoints compared to intravenous Keytruda.
Phase II ALPACA Trial Shows Lepodisiran Produces Significant, Sustained Lipoprotein(a) Reductions
March 31st 2025Eli Lilly’s lepodisiran, an investigational siRNA therapy, achieved significant and durable reductions in lipoprotein(a) levels, a major genetic risk factor for cardiovascular disease.
