Project description
Germ-free eggs for vaccine production and biotherapeutic applications
More than one billion chicken eggs are used each year by vaccine manufacturers. Egg-based manufacture of vaccines is the most common method. Thanks to the EU-funded OvaVax project, it is now possible to produce germ-free eggs, a superior product to the current benchmark specific pathogen free (SPF) eggs. Now, the EIC-funded Ovavax2 project aims to broaden the scope of OvaVax's H2020 SME Instrument Phase 2. The goal is to expand and accelerate project work by including influenza, COVID-19, yellow fever and Newcastle disease and to produce germ-free eggs on a commercial scale. Challenges such as COVID-19 and future pandemics have increased the need for the rapid advancement and scale-up of vaccine production.
Objective
Ovagen is aiming to transform the egg-based production of vaccines and other biopharmaceutical medicines by producing the world’s first Germ Free egg and bringing it into mass production.
The proposed programme of work will build on the groundwork initiated as part of the 30 month OvaVax project (GA 858390) and provides a logical expansion of this disruptive, innovative technology to the challenges facing the world as it comes to grips with COVID-19 and future pandemics with the need for rapid scale-up of vaccine production
Ovagen is applying for EIC Accelerator funding to broaden the project scope of their existing H2020 SME Instrument Phase 2 to expand and accelerate the existing influenza project, to include COVID-19, Yellow Fever, Newcastle Disease and to include readiness for production and accelerated international scaleup of germ free egg production to increase global vaccine manufacturing capacity in readiness for future pandemics similar to COVID-19.
Fields of science
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesmicrobiologybacteriology
- medical and health scienceshealth sciencespublic healthepidemiologypandemics
- medical and health scienceshealth sciencesinfectious diseasesRNA virusesinfluenza
- medical and health scienceshealth sciencesinfectious diseasesRNA virusescoronaviruses
- medical and health sciencesbasic medicinepharmacology and pharmacypharmaceutical drugsvaccines
Programme(s)
- HORIZON.3.1 - The European Innovation Council (EIC) Main Programme
Funding Scheme
HORIZON-AG - HORIZON Action Grant Budget-BasedCoordinator
F26PC79 BALLINA
Ireland
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.