iBio, Inc., a biologics contract manufacturing organization (CMO) and biotechnology company, is progressing towards developing vaccine candidates for preventing infection from the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes the COVID-19 coronavirus disease.
 
iBio created its SARS-CoV-2 Virus-Like Particle (VLP)-based constructs in just a few weeks using its FastPharming System to produce the nanoparticles in, and purify them from, plants. The manufacturing platform not only provides for rapid development of research quantities of product, but also high-quality material that is readily scalable for producing doses for clinical trials and commercial use.
 
On March 11, 2020, iBio filed four provisional patent applications with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in support of the VLP platform, as well as other technologies for treating or preventing infections with the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
 
“We are pleased with both the speed of our development activities and the quality of the VLPs our technology is yielding in practice,” said Tom Isett, co-chairman and chief executive officer, iBio. “The tightly controlled particle size allows for uniform antigen display, which should translate to a consistent dose response and a highly efficient production process, facilitating a ramp-up to tens of millions of doses if we are successful in the clinic.”
 
Originally built in 2010 with funding from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), part of the U.S. Department of Defense, iBio’s FastPharming Facility was part of the “Blue Angel” initiative to establish facilities capable of rapid delivery of medical countermeasures in response to a disease pandemic. The factory is equipped with automated hydroponics and vertical farming systems for the production of a wide array of biological medicines using a relative of the tobacco plant as the “bioreactor.”
 
Dr. Sylvain Marcel, vice president of protein expression sciences, iBio, said, “I am optimistic about the potential of our COVID-19 vaccine program. In addition to our core VLP production capabilities, we are coating VLPs with oligomannose so that their glycosylation profile closely resembles that of naturally occurring SARS-CoV-2 viruses. This may allow for more efficient uptake of the vaccine by human antigen presenting cells via their mannose receptors. If so, it could result in enhanced protection against SARS-CoV-2. We look forward to providing further updates on our progress as developments unfold.”