Taiwan Fully Utilizing Biomed Capacity in the Quest for COVID-19 Vaccine

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7/May/2020

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused serious impact in every aspect of daily life for people around the world. All nations are in the fight together. With a long history of being a responsible member of the international community, Taiwan is fully committed to the fight against the disease.

As one of the biomedical leaders in Asia, Taiwan is fully utilizing its biomedical capacity in the quest for the cure for the notorious COVID-19. Apart from the successes in the production of drugs such as Remdisivir and hydroxychloroquine, Taiwan is also one of the spearheads in global vaccine development.

Adimmune (ADIM) Corporation, founded in 1965 and based in central Taiwan, is the only influenza vaccine manufacturer with both EU GMP and US FDA certification in Asia, and also the leading manufacturer of human vaccines in Taiwan. Having worked closely with National Taiwan University (NTU), ADIM announced on May 4 that it has managed to develop a candidate vaccine for the coronavirus.

The candidate vaccine was developed using virus strains acquired from Europe, which are believed to be the most dangerous amongst the ones currently discovered. Mice tests conducted in NTU virology laboratories have shown promising results with the serum antibody in the vaccine not only neutralizing the coronavirus but also further suppressed it.

According to ADIM estimation, the first phase of human clinical trials is likely to begin in the third quarter of 2020 after obtaining approval. The company will collaborate with National Health Research Institutes (NHRI) to ensure the safety of the candidate vaccine. The company is hoping for mass production by the winter of 2021.

Medigen Vaccine Biologics Corp (MVC), another prominent Taiwanese vaccine manufacturer based in Taipei, released on May 5 that it has broadened its cooperation with the U.S. National Institute of Health (NIH), and acquired the complete global authorization on the forth coming COVID-19 vaccine, including marketing and production, which is an important breakthrough for MVC’s future operations.

In fact, MVC and NIH already signed an agreement earlier in February, enabling it to become one of the two partners on NHI’s COVID-19 vaccine development project. Sponsored by NHI, mRNA-1273 was the first candidate vaccine developed in the U.S., and currently the fastest paced in the world, with human clinical trials in the U.S. already being conducted in mid-March. Using a fragment of the genetic code from the coronavirus, mRNA-1273 is expected to trigger the same immune response as traditional vaccines and in effect fight off COVID-19.

MVC stated that its COVID-19 candidate vaccine is on track to complete animal clinical trials in the second quarter of 2020, followed by human clinical trials in the second half of 2020 in Taiwan.  

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***As of today, May 7, the COVID-19 outbreak has resulted in more than 3,777,583 confirmed cases worldwide. As of writing, a total of 440 confirmed cases were reported in Taiwan, with 349 imported cases, 6 deceased cases, 347 cases released from isolation, and the remainder hospitalized in stable condition. See the latest update: https://www.cdc.gov.tw/En