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Microbix mobilizes SWATT team to help companies worldwide expand flu vaccine production
Microbix mobilizes SWATT team to help companies worldwide expand flu vaccine production.
About this update from Microbix Biosystems Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"\n\n\n\nTORONTO, Aug. 13 /CNW/ - Microbix Biosystems Inc. (TSX:MBX) is\nestablishing a Special Workgroup for Applied Technology Transfer (SWATT) that\nwill be instrumental in helping manufacturers significantly boost the amount\nof flu vaccine produced throughout the world.\n\n\nThe SWATT team will be sent to facilities adopting the Microbix\nproprietary virus yield enhancement technology - VIRUSMAX(TM). The team is\nexpected to be operational this Fall. It will spend several weeks in each\nlocation helping customers implement the technology and training local\npersonnel.\n\n\nAt present, only about 350 million doses of flu vaccine are produced\nannually in the world. There are only three countries that produce enough\nvaccine domestically to immunize their populations - Canada, France, and\nAustralia. Every other country lacks the manufacturing capacity to meet its\nown needs. The largest domestic deficits are the U.S., China and India.\n\n\n population domestically-manufactured\n (millions) annual vaccine doses(millions)\n\nCanada 30 35\nFrance 60 80\nAustralia 25 25\nU.S. 305 90\nChina 1,320 15\nIndia 1,130 0\n\n\nMicrobix' technology has been proven to double vaccine production output.\nThat means that 700 million doses could be produced worldwide if every vaccine\nmanufacturer adopted VIRUSMAX(TM). Microbix conservatively estimates that the\nworld market for VIRUSMAX(TM) could be more than $100 million a year.\n\n\nIt was also announced today that Australia has indicated that it will\nissue a patent on this technology to Microbix. Similar patent protection has\nalready been allowed in the U.S., Canada and India, and a number of other\napplications in major markets are currently pending.\n\n\nVIRUSMAX(TM) works by increasing the virus yield from eggs. Manufacturers\nuse chicken eggs to incubate flu viruses which are then used in the production\nof vaccines, but much of the virus is attached to debris which is routinely\ndiscarded. Microbix has discovered how to retrieve this material and recover\nthe virus, thereby boosting yield.\n\n\n"Our technology can be installed very quickly, and with limited capital\ncosts, into existing manufacturing processes," said William J. Gastle, CEO of\nMicrobix. "We have the ability to ramp up global vaccine production in a short\nperiod of time. That will be especially critica...