CDMO, CMO, Supplier Roundup in Supporting COVID-19 Projects
The latest from CDMOs/CMOs and suppliers in COVID-19 projects featuring Catalent and Symbiosis Pharmaceutical Services.
Biologics Manufacturing
Catalent, ViralClear Enter Pact for Potential COVID-19 Treatment
Catalent has signed an agreement with ViralClear Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of BioSig Technologies, a Westport, Connecticut company focused on electrophysiology, to work on the development of a potential treatment for adults with advanced SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
Under the agreement, Catalent will be developing two oral dosage forms of ViralClear’s broad-spectrum anti-viral agent, merimepodib, a solution and a solid oral dosage form.
ViralClear is undertaking research to investigate the potential of merimepodib to address SARS-CoV-2, either as a stand-alone treatment or in combination with other antiviral agents or immune modulators. Catalent will work on the program at its facility in St. Petersburg, Florida and manufacture an oral solution for clinical studies as well as undertake feasibility studies on other liquid-filled oral formulations.
Catalent’s 453,000-square foot facility at St. Petersburg is its primary softgel development and manufacturing facility in the US, with a capacity of 18 billion capsules per year.
Source: Catalent
Formulation Development/Drug-Product Manufacturing
Symbiosis, AstraZeneca Enter Supply Pact for COVID-19 Vaccine Mfg
Symbiosis Pharmaceutical Services, a Stirling, Scotland-based CMO, has signed a supply agreement with AstraZeneca for the sterile manufacture of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 recombinant adenovirus vaccine candidate (AZD1222) for AstraZeneca-sponsored clinical trials.
Under the agreement, Symbiosis will provide AstraZeneca access to sterile vaccine drug-product manufacturing capacity for clinical trial supply. The agreement follows AstraZeneca’s recent announcement of a licensing agreement with the University of Oxford for the development, manufacturing, and distribution of the AZD1222 vaccine candidate, formerly known as ChAdOx1 nCoV-19. The vaccine candidate is currently in clinical trials at multiple sites in the UK.
