The Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Dynavax technologies based in Emeryville California, and Texas Children’s Hospital have developed a COVID-19 vaccine, termed Corbevax. This vaccine is gaining attention all around the globe as a model for the worldwide vaccination campaign. Its major advantage is that the researchers have forgone intellectual property rights for its use in COVID-19 treatment. Maria Bottazzi and Peter Hotez are the developers of the vaccine. They intend to upsurge manufacturing competencies for Corbevax globally to mitigate vaccine disproportion.
The revenue derived from the sale of the Covid-19 vaccine by Moderna and Pfizer, two multinational pharmaceutical giants, is projected at $70.2 billion. In contrast, Maria Bottazzi has proposed a homecoming to Salk’s philosophy. Maria admits that multinationals are answerable to their stockholders. However, in the setting of a worldwide emergency, apparently, all such companies should be more altruistic (selfless) while computing their incomes and working towards improving international public availability.
The vaccine has been licensed to Biological E. Limited (BioE), an Indian biopharmaceutical firm, for its production and development. Corbevax consists of a type of the receptor binding domain of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, along with the adjuvants (agents that increase our response to a particular vaccine), namely aluminum hydroxide gel and Dynavax’s CpG 1018. The spike protein is one of the biggest structural proteins present in coronaviruses that are responsible for the pandemic. This spike protein permits the entry of the coronavirus inside our body cells such that it can make copies of itself and cause COVID-19.
Nevertheless, injection of the modified protein alone (vaccine) to the body will not be detrimental if the virus is absent. For most people, soon after, the body will develop an immune reaction against the injected vaccine. Thus, upon infection by the coronavirus, the immune system will remember the virus and be ready to produce a response. Hence, it is unlikely for the infected individual to fall ill.
Peter Hotez and his collaborators used the yeast Pichia pastoris to produce the protein. They followed a procedure conventionally used for the development of prevailing Hepatitis B vaccines. Hotez mentions that Corbevax has been found well-effective against different variants of the coronavirus, including the Delta variant. Moreover, the neutralizing antibodies of this vaccine persist for a long time in the human body. The vaccine would approximately cost in the range of hepatitis B vaccines. That is between $1.5 and $2.
The vaccine development was sponsored with $7 million generally from private stockholders, together with a $1 million contribution by Tito’s Vodka. Despite the Baylor College obtaining a fee for its development, the technology has been distributed patent-free to all companies. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare of India pre-ordered approximately 300 million doses of the vaccine on June 03, 2021. Hotez also stated that they plan to use this vaccine in low-income nations for increasing the access to vaccines. It has been designed in a manner that enables easy storage. The team has been waiving intellectual property rights for the last two decades. They are continuously attempting to create vaccines against untreated tropical illnesses, considering underprivileged populations are the end-users.
References
Ansede, M. (2022). Creator of patent-free Covid-19 vaccine: ‘Multinationals should be more altruistic when calculating their profits’. Available from https://english.elpais.com/usa/2022-01-12/creator-of-patent-free-covid-19-vaccine-multinationals-should-be-more-altruistic-when-calculating-their-profits.html (Accessed January 17, 2022)
Basu M, (2021). How Corbevax and Covovax, the two vaccines newly approved in India, fight Covid. Available from https://theprint.in/science/how-corbevax-and-covovax-the-two-vaccines-newly-approved-in-india-fight-covid/791564/ (Accessed January 17, 2022)
Texas Children’s Hospital. Texas Children’s Hospital and Baylor College of Medicine COVID-19 Vaccine Technology Secures Emergency Use Authorization in India. Available from https://www.texaschildrens.org/texas-children%E2%80%99s-hospital-and-baylor-college-medicine-covid-19-vaccine-technology-secures-emergency (Accessed January 17, 2022)
MSNBC (2022). New Corbevax vaccine could be global game changer. Available from https://www.msnbc.com/american-voices/watch/new-corbevax-vaccine-could-be-global-game-changer-130443333539 (Accessed January 17, 2022)
CEPI (2020). CEPI partners with Biological E Limited to advance development and manufacture of COVID-19 vaccine candidate. Available from https://cepi.net/news_cepi/cepi-partners-with-biological-e-limited-to-advance-development-and-manufacture-of-covid-19-vaccine-candidate/ (Accessed January 17, 2022)
Hotez, PZ., Bottazzi, ME. (2021). A COVID Vaccine for All. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-covid-vaccine-for-all/ (Accessed January 17, 2022)
Featured Photo: Texas Children Hospital.
