Dalton and University of Guelph Collaborate in Anti-TB Vaccine Development
Dalton Pharma Services announced that the Company and the University of Guelph are developing a vaccine against tuberculosis. Initiation of the program was made possible through government funding directed at applied research.
The vaccine will be jointly developed at the University of Guelph and Dalton under the direction of Professor Mario A. Monteiro, who is a world leader in microbial polysaccharide discovery and the development of polysaccharide-based vaccines. Dalton will scale up and manufacture the conjugate vaccine under GLP for proof of concept studies in an animal model.
“This collaboration is a perfect fit for our long term business development strategy in the vaccine field”, said Peter Pekos, CEO of Dalton. “A vaccine against TB is one of the world’s most sought after vaccines. Successful commercialization would result in a potential blockbuster product that Dalton will manufacture in Canada. Industry, government, and academia will work together creating highly skilled jobs and further strengthen our capacity for innovative development in the vaccine sector.”
The strategy used for the anti-TB vaccine program of Dalton and U of G is to develop an initial vaccine which is effective against Mycobacterium bovis, the agent responsible for tuberculosis in cattle and lions. Previous studies have shown that M. bovis and the human agent M. tuberculosis share similar polysaccharides. The polysaccharide-based M. bovis vaccine will be constructed using technology developed by Professor Monteiro and will be evaluated in a lion animal model through an arrangement already in place with veterinary expertise at the Timbavati Nature Reserve in South Africa. A successful outcome will lead to a vaccine treatment for animal TB, and will provide a solid platform for the development of a human anti-TB vaccine.
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