AURORA | Scientists at an Aurora company say they have developed the first vaccine to combat the particularly dangerous H7N9 flu strain.
Greffex, Inc., which is based in the Fitzsimons Life Science District, announced this month that just one month after the virus had been characterized, the company’s scientists built an H7N9 avian influenza vaccine using its proprietary GreVax technology. The technology allows scientists to develop vaccines in just a month that previously took several months to create.
“We believe the world needs a ‘plug-and-play’ method of creating vaccines,” Greffex Chief Scientific Officer Dr. Uwe D. Staerz said in a statement announcing the vaccine’s development. “Speed as well as flexibility is needed for vaccine design to combat emerged infectious threats.”
The company develops vaccines at a cellular level and can roll out 100 million doses in five weeks, and they don’t need 100 million eggs the way current methods do. Instead, the company could produce that many vaccines in a small area, using machines that take up about as much space as three standard washing machines.
The company said it is developing several vaccines for other ailments as well.
“We originally created the GREVAX system for H1N1 swine influenza, and now have a Dengue vaccine, an Anthrax vaccine, an Ebata vaccine, and avian influenza vaccines, and we have overcome major production and manufacturing obstacles,” John R. Price, the company president and CEO said in the statement. “And we are working on a universal influenza vaccine, the ‘holy grail’ of vaccine science.”
According to the Associated Press, the H7N9 virus has infected 126 people in China, killing 23 of them. Experts are watching it closely for any sign it could spark a pandemic, but say so far there is no evidence it can spread easily among people. They believe infections are caused by some kind of contact with sick birds.