Mymetics to advance preclinical studies for virosome-based Covid-19 vaccine through Innosuisse grant

Mymetics SA, a subsidiary of Mymetics Corporation (OTCQB: MYMX), a pioneer and leader in the research and development of virosome-based vaccines against life threatening and life disabling diseases, and Insel Gruppe AG, of which the Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, are part of, today announced that they have been awarded a grant from the Swiss Innovation Agency (Innosuisse).
The grant will allow Mymetics in collaboration with the Department of Pneumology at the Inselspital, Bern University Hospital and the Department of Biomedical Research DBMR of Bern University to start a preclinical study which will investigate Mymetics’ virosome-based Covid-19 nasal vaccine candidate for safety and tolerance, and its capacity to elicit protective respiratory immunity to block nasal infection and virus spreading to the lungs and brain.

Since April 2020, Mymetics’ goal is to develop a safe and highly effective virosome-based Covid-19 vaccine that can be easily administered to all age groups, particularly to immune compromised and elderly populations. The Company is thereby partnering with leading academic institutions to explore and select the best SARS-CoV antigens incorporated into virosome particles, while optimizing the route of administration and thermostability of the vaccine, before moving into human clinical trials.

With the nasal vaccine, Mymetics aims to elicit not only a systemic, but also a protective respiratory immunity with a local memory mucosal immunity, which is often poorly induced by standard intramuscular vaccination.

Prof. Thomas Geiser, the academic research leader of the project and Chairman and Chief Physician of Department of Pneumology at Inselspital, University Hospital Bern, is thankful for the committed research funding from Innosuisse: “We are confronted with an increasing number of Covid-19 patients and are very motivated to collaborate to the development of innovative vaccines. The research at the University Hospital in Bern receives a boost through this funding and recognizes the work of our research teams. The project with Mymetics will be performed at the Department for Biomedical Research (DBMR) of the University of Bern under supervision of Dr. Amiq Gazdar.”

“This grant will allow us to evaluate our intranasal Covid-19 vaccine candidates, for which we aim to induce mucosal neutralizing antibodies and T cells as frontline defense to block SARS-CoV-2 aerosol transmission and nasal infection prior spreading to the lungs, brain and other organs” said Sylvain Fleury, Chief Scientific Officer of Mymetics.

“This Innosuisse funded, University Hospital and University of Bern collaboration is another example of our strategy to access expertise through collaborative approaches to advance towards a safe and highly efficacious Covid-19 virosome based vaccine,” said Ronald Kempers, CEO of Mymetics. “We are grateful to the Innosuisse program and honored to have the opportunity to work with the team of University Hospital and University of Bern and believe their skills and expertise will bring valuable insights in our Covid-19 vaccine development.”