CoVLP

CoVLP is a COVID-19 vaccine candidate developed by Medicago and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). It is a coronavirus virus-like particle vaccine grown in the Australian weed, Nicotiana benthamiana.[1][2][3]

CoVLP
Vaccine description
Target diseaseCOVID-19
TypeVirus-like particles
Clinical data
Routes of
administration		Intramuscular
Identifiers
DrugBank
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The Medicago method to manufacture CoVLP is a "molecular farming" technology regarded as rapid, low-cost, and safe.[1][4] It has been proposed specifically for production of COVID-19 vaccines.[5][6]

As of January 2021, the Medicago CoVLP vaccine candidate was in a Phase II-III clinical trial in Canada and the United States, involving 30,918 participants.[7]

Description

CoVLP is an example of a virus-like particle vaccine, consisting of a molecular complex which closely resembles a virus, but is non-infectious because its contains no viral genetic material.[1] It uses recombinant spike proteins derived from SARS-CoV-2.[8][9]

The virus-like particles are produced by creating a bacterium engineered with genes of the virus, then introducing the bacteria into Nicotiana benthamiana plants.[1] The plants take up the bacteria virus-derived generic material, producing in its leaves the virus-like particles, which are then harvested and extracted.[3][10]

In use since the 1990s, the method of using a plant like N. benthamiana has been called "molecular farming" or a "plant-based factory", having vaccine manufacturing advantages of rapid, low-cost production of proteins, large scalability for production, and safety of using plants for pharmaceutical production.[1][4] It has been proposed specifically for production of COVID-19 vaccines.[5][6]

Development

Medicago is developing the COVID-19 vaccine candidate, CoVLP, in collaboration with the governments of Canada and Quebec, and by using an adjuvant manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK).[8] The GSK adjuvant is intended to enhance the immune response to CoVLP, reducing the amount of antigen required per dose, thereby facilitating mass production of vaccine doses.[11][12]

Clinical research

As of August 2020, the Medicago vaccine candidate was being evaluated for safety, toxicity, and immune response in a Phase I clinical trial at two locations in Quebec.[13] In November 2020, Medicago-GSK started a Phase II-III clinical trial for CoVLP, enrolling 30,918 participants in three Canadian provinces and three locations in the United States.[7][9] The Phase II-III trial has an estimated completion date of April 2022.[7]

References
  1. LeBlanc, Zacharie; Waterhouse, Peter; Bally, Julia (22 December 2020). "Plant-based vaccines: The way ahead?". Viruses. 13 (1): 5. doi:10.3390/v13010005. ISSN 1999-4915. PMC 7822169. PMID 33375155.
  2. St Philip E, Favaro A, MacLeod M (14 July 2020). "The hunt for a vaccine: Canadian company begins human testing of COVID-19 candidate". CTV News. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  3. Chander V (14 July 2020). "Canada's Medicago begins human trials of plant-based COVID-19 vaccine". National Post. Reuters. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  4. Fischer, Rainer; Buyel, Johannes F. (2020). "Molecular farming – The slope of enlightenment (Review)". Biotechnology Advances. 40: 107519. doi:10.1016/j.biotechadv.2020.107519. ISSN 0734-9750. PMID 31954848.
  5. Dhama, Kuldeep; Natesan, Senthilkumar; Iqbal Yatoo, Mohd.; Patel, Shailesh Kumar; Tiwari, Ruchi; Saxena, Shailendra K; Harapan, Harapan (1 December 2020). "Plant-based vaccines and antibodies to combat COVID-19: current status and prospects (Review)". Human Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics. 16 (12): 2913–2920. doi:10.1080/21645515.2020.1842034. ISSN 2164-5515. PMC 7754927. PMID 33270484.
  6. Hannah Balfour (15 April 2020). "Plant bio-factories contributing to the COVID-19 fight". Drug Target Review. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
  7. Clinical trial number NCT04636697 for "Study of a Recombinant Coronavirus-Like Particle COVID-19 Vaccine in Adults" at ClinicalTrials.gov
  8. "GSK partners with Medicago to develop plant-based Covid-19 vaccine". Pharmaceutical Technology. 8 July 2020. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
  9. "Medicago and GSK start of Phase II/III clinical trials of adjuvanted COVID-19 vaccine candidate". Drug Discovery World. 13 November 2020. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
  10. "VLP technologies and production platform". Medicago. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
  11. Chung, Jee Young; Thone, Melissa N.; Kwon, Young Jik (2021). "COVID-19 vaccines: The status and perspectives in delivery points of view". Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews. 170: 1–25. doi:10.1016/j.addr.2020.12.011. ISSN 0169-409X. PMC 7759095. PMID 33359141.
  12. Lucy Parsons (8 July 2020). "GSK signs deal with Medicago for COVID-19 vaccine". PMLive. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
  13. Clinical trial number NCT04450004 for "Safety, Tolerability and Immunogenicity of a Coronavirus-Like Particle COVID-19 Vaccine in Adults Aged 18-55 Years" at ClinicalTrials.gov
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