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MediciNova Announces Initiation of Master Virus Seed Stock Production for its Intranasal COVID-19 Vaccine using BC-PIV Vector Technology
LA JOLLA, Calif., Nov. 24, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MediciNova, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company traded on the NASDAQ Global Market (NASDAQ:MNOV) and the
About this update from Medicinova, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"LA JOLLA, Calif., Nov. 24, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MediciNova, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company traded on the NASDAQ Global Market (NASDAQ:MNOV) and the JASDAQ Market of the Tokyo Stock Exchange (Code Number: 4875), today announced that Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP)-based Master Virus Seed Stock (MVSS) production of its novel intranasal SARS-CoV-2 vaccine for COVID-19, using BC-PIV technology, has been initiated at Millipore Sigma BioReliance Services, a group company of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany.\n Yuichi Iwaki, M.D., Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of MediciNova, Inc. commented, “We are pleased to begin production of MVSS, a key step in the production of vaccines, at Millipore Sigma BioReliance Services. We look forward to producing an effective intranasal COVID-19 vaccine and reporting additional development progress in the near future.” About Master Virus Seed Stock (MVSS) MVSS is a seed virus necessary to produce BC-PIV/S. By infecting MVSS to the packaging cells, BC-PIV/S is produced, which is then recovered and purified to produce the BC-PIV SARS-CoV-2 vaccine for clinical studies. About the BC-PIV SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine for COVID-19 BC-PIV, an innovative non-transmissible viral vector co-developed by BioComo and Mie University, is derived from the recombinant human parainfluenza virus type 2 (hPIV2). It is highly efficient in its ability to transfer multiple foreign proteins to recipients and has a strong safety profile as no secondary infectious virus is produced. BC-PIV is designed to display not only the gene but also the foreign protein itself on the surface and inside of the viral membrane. Therefore, it can carry the large membrane proteins of viruses and signal transduction receptors/ligand proteins on the viral surface. BC-PIV is able to carry the proteins that require a proper three-dimensional structure or multimeric structure while maintaining the structure. BC-PIV elicits good immunogenicity against antigen proteins without adjuvants. The BC-PIV SARS-CoV-2 vaccine prototype has been developed to include the specific SARS-CoV-2 antigen protein in order to express maximum antigenicity. The BC-PIV SARS-COV-2 vaccine can be developed as an intranasal vaccine in addition to an intramuscular injection because of its high affinity to nasal and upper respiratory tract mucosa, which is the same rou...