Oravax Medical has taken an early step toward the commercialization of its oral COVID-19 vaccine by entering into a deal to ship 10 million doses of the clinical-phase candidate to Southeast Asia.
The agreement with the Vietnam-based Tan Thanh Holdings Investment Joint Stock Company covers an initial order for 10 million doses and consists of milestone payments. Tan Thanh Holdings has gained the right to sell the oral vaccine in Southeast Asian countries including Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.
Oravax is developing a viruslike particle vaccine that targets three proteins found on the surface of the pandemic coronavirus. Using the technology, Oravax has created a prospect with the potential to open up oral administration, simplify logistics and continue providing protection even as the virus mutates.
While Oravax now has an initial order to go with the Mexico-focused co-development deal it disclosed last month, it is still a long way from showing the candidate can live up to its potential. Oravax enrolled the first subject in a phase 1 clinical trial last month, positioning it to start showing how the candidate affects people who have neither received another COVID-19 vaccine nor contracted the coronavirus.
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In the longer term, the fast-dwindling number of people who have been neither vaccinated nor infected will necessitate the study of the oral vaccine outside of the immunologically naive population. Plans for more clinical trials are underway.
The clinical program is advancing alongside talks about the future of Oravax. Oramed Pharmaceuticals, Premas Biotech, MyMD Pharmaceuticals and other stakeholders came together to set up the biotech last year. Now, Oramed and MyMD are “evaluating several options” for their stakes. One option is to take the oral vaccine startup public by distributing shares to Oramed and MyMD shareholders.