Medicago considers Genople biopark for new vaccine facility

Quebec-based Medicago Inc is to conduct a feasibility study in collaboration with Genopole biopark for the establishment of a vaccine production facility in France.

Genopole is a French science park near Paris dedicated to life sciences. Medicago, a privately-held biopharmaceutical company which is developing vaccines, has obtained a grant from the Quebec Ministry of Economic Development, Innovation and Export Trade to finance 40% of the study. The study will be conducted by SNC Lavalin with the assistance of Medicago and the Genopole d'Evry.

"Medicago's proprietary plant-based vaccine development and production technologies can deliver large volumes of vaccines, just one month after the identification of genetic sequences from an emerging pandemic strain. This rapid time frame is critical as it could allow the vaccination of a population before the first wave of the pandemic strikes," said Andy Sheldon, president and ceo of Medicago. "As we are able to rapidly produce new vaccines in large quantities, we have been in discussions with several countries in Europe, Asia and Africa for the establishment of partnerships to create domestic vaccine production infrastructures based on Medicago's technologies."

The company is exploring opportunities to establish a facility that offers "surge" capacity to produce pandemic vaccine doses and eventually other biodefense related products, as well as offering bioproduction services to local companies.