GSK acquires Affinivax Inc. and its next-generation pneumococcal vaccines.
GSK plc announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Affinivax, Inc. , a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company based in Cambridge, Boston, Massachusetts, for a $2.1 billion upfront payment and up to $1.2 billion in potential development milestones. Affinivax is pioneering the development of a novel class of vaccines, the most advanced of which are next-generation pneumococcal vaccines.
Pneumococcal disease includes pneumonia, meningitis, bloodstream infections, and milder diseases such as sinusitis and otitis media and remains a significant unmet medical need despite the availability of current pneumococcal vaccines. There are many different pneumococcal serotypes. The number of serotypes in current vaccines is limited due to the degree of immunological interference observed when using existing conjugation technologies.Affinivax has developed the Multiple Antigen Presenting System (MAPS), a novel technology that supports higher valency than conventional conjugation technologies, enabling broader coverage against prevalent pneumococcal serotypes and potentially creating higher immunogenicity than current vaccines. Affinivax’s most advanced vaccine candidate (AFX3772) includes 24 pneumococcal polysaccharides plus two conserved pneumococcal proteins (compared to up to 20 serotypes in currently approved vaccines). A 30-plus valent pneumococcal candidate vaccine is also in pre-clinical development.
Learning Zones
The Learning Zones are an educational resource for healthcare professionals that provide medical information on the epidemiology, pathophysiology and burden of disease, as well as diagnostic techniques and treatment regimens.
1 mins