VAXXAS LEADS SESSION ON ALTERNATIVE VACCINE ROUTES AT WORLD VACCINE CONGRESS, HIGHLIGHTING CONSUMER PREFERENCE FOR PATCH OVER NEEDLE-AND-SYRINGE FOR VACCINE DELIVERY
APRIL 2, 2024
Vaxxas President and Chief Executive Officer, David Hoey, moderated this sold-out session at 2 pm EDT on 1 April 2024 at the World Vaccine Congress in Washington, DC, USA.
Vaxxas Chief Medical Officer, Rochelle Chaiken, MD, presented results from primary market research showing a majority of enrolled adults would prefer high-density microarray patch (HD-MAP) delivery over an injection for their next flu vaccine.
Vaxxas, a clinical-stage biotechnology company commercializing a novel vaccination platform, led a workshop today at the World Vaccine Congress 2024 entitled “Vaccine Delivery – Alternative Vaccine Routes.” The workshop spotlighted the significant potential for alternative delivery technologies, like Vaxxas’s high-density microarray patch (HD-MAP), to substantially increase vaccination rates for protection against infectious diseases.
During the workshop, Vaxxas’s Chief Medical Officer, Rochelle Chaiken, MD, presented results from a primary market research study of people with at least a 5-year flu vaccination history, including people who had frequently received flu vaccines as well as those who had received flu vaccines only sporadically.
The study, which enrolled younger adults (aged from 20 to 59 years of age) and adults 60 years and older, showed:
Given the opportunity, a substantial majority of adults would choose HD-MAP vaccination over an injection by needle-and-syringe for their next flu vaccine.
More than 90 percent of those in the sporadic flu vaccine group and 75 percent in the frequent flu vaccine group would opt for HD-MAP vaccination over needle-and-syringe for their next flu vaccination.
Most adults would actively seek out a vaccination location offering the HD-MAP; with an 81 percent preference seen among the younger adults group.
There was also an overall interest in self-administration using the HD-MAP among both groups, with 97 percent of the younger adult group and 85 percent of the older adult group expressing they were ‘Very Positive’ or ‘Somewhat Positive’ about self-administration options using the HD-MAP.
Recent data from the United States’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that flu vaccination coverage rates for adults between 18 and 49 years of age was consistently low between 2010 and 2023, highlighting the potential for alternative vaccination technologies, like the Vaxxas HD-MAP, to increase vaccination rates.
"Better and more accessible vaccine delivery options – like our novel HD-MAP skin patch – can be deployed to significantly improve global human health,” David L. Hoey, President and CEO of Vaxxas, said. "This strong preference for HD-MAP over conventional needle-and-syringe delivery for seasonal influenza vaccines supports our continued advancement of Vaxxas’s technology and confidence in our technology’s ability to help increase future rates of vaccination."
Vaxxas is advancing a robust pipeline of HD-MAP vaccine candidates and has several Phase I and Phase I/II clinical studies evaluating the effectiveness and safety of HD-MAP vaccination for a range of infectious diseases including seasonal influenza, pandemic influenza, COVID-19, and measles and rubella.
"This direct evidence of a strong preference for HD-MAP vaccination delivery over traditional needle-and-syringe, combined with our compelling Phase I and I/II clinical data showing HD-MAP delivery can be equally if not more effective than needle-and-syringe vaccination, illustrates the potential value of our ground-breaking vaccine delivery technology," Rochelle Chaiken, MD, Chief Medical Officer of Vaxxas, said. "We remain steadfastly committed to advancing our HD-MAP delivered vaccines for a number of diseases, with the aim of having a significant impact on public health on a global scale."
ABOUT HD-MAP NEEDLE-FREE VACCINES
The Vaxxas high-density microarray patch (HD-MAP) is made up of thousands of microscopic points attached to a small patch. Each of these micro-projections contains a tiny dose of vaccine in a dried formulation. When applied to the skin, the patch delivers the respective vaccine to the abundant number of immune cells that naturally reside immediately below the skin surface.
HD-MAP vaccine delivery offers many potential benefits over more traditional ways of administering vaccines. For example, the dried form of the vaccine is more stable at higher temperatures than vaccines in liquid formulations, therefore reducing the need for cold-chain storage and distribution.
Vaxxas’s HD-MAPs have proven safe and tolerable in hundreds of trial participants to date, and have been shown to induce equal or greater immune responses to injected vaccines at lower doses. Compared with needle and syringe systems, HD-MAP vaccines are also much easier to administer and are likely to have greater acceptability.
Ultimately, HD-MAP patches could enable a future in which vaccine patches could be mailed directly to peoples’ homes, workplaces, and schools, avoiding the delay and inconvenience of traditional needle-and-syringe vaccine scheduling and administration.
ABOUT VAXXAS
Vaxxas is a privately held biotechnology company focused on enhancing the performance of existing and next-generation vaccines with its proprietary high-density microarray patch (HD-MAP). Vaxxas is targeting initial applications in infectious diseases and oncology.
With success in several completed human clinical trials involving more than 500 participants; additional ongoing Phase I clinical studies for seasonal influenza and COVID-19; and other vaccine studies targeting pandemic influenza, funded by the United States Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), Vaxxas’s HD-MAP vaccine delivery platform is advancing toward commercialization.
Vaxxas’s core technology was initially developed at The University of Queensland (UQ), and the company was established as a start-up in 2011 by UQ’s commercialization group UniQuest. The company was founded with the completion of an initial equity financing led by OneVentures Innovation Fund I with co-investors Brandon Capital Partners and US-based HealthCare Ventures, followed by a further financing led by OneVentures with UQ joining the most recent financing.
OneVentures Innovation Fund I and Brandon BioCatalyst are supported by the Australian Government’s Innovation Investment Fund (IIF) program. The IIF is an Australian Government venture capital initiative that provides investment capital and managerial expertise through licensed venture capital fund managers to investee companies. Learn more at One-Ventures and Brandon Capital.
CAUTION
The Vaxxas HD-MAP delivered vaccines are under investigation and available only for investigational uses. They are not available anywhere in the world for sale or purchase. As such, Vaxxas makes no claim that the vaccines are reliable, durable, dependable, safe, or effective, and makes no claim that it is superior to any other vaccine or vaccine delivery technology.
MEDIA
Vaxxas - In United States:
Kathryn Morris
The Yates Network
+1 914 204 6412
kathryn@theyatesnetwork.com
Vaxxas - In Australia:
Amy Miller
WE Communication
+61 431 072 422
amymi@we-worldwide.com