$633k Award Supports Gonorrhea Vaccine Development

The Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator (CARB-X) today announced it is awarding $633k to Intravacc to support the development of the Avacc® 11 vaccine candidate that prevents Neisseria gonorrhoeae bacterial infections.

This CARB-X award supports the development of Intravacc's meningococcal outer membrane vesicle (OMV) vaccine that carries several important gonococcal antigens to prevent Neisseria gonorrhoeae (gonococci) infections.

Through the tailored gonococcal antigens on the surface of the meningococcal OMV, Intravacc anticipates a significant enhancement in the vaccine candidate's efficacy against gonorrhea.

"Drug-resistant strains of Neisseria gonorrhoeae have evaded all but one existing antibiotic (ceftriaxone)," said Erin Duffy, PhD, R&D Chief of CARB-X, in a press release on January 16, 2024. 

"Vaccines are powerful tools in the prevention of bacterial infections."

"With an appropriate vaccination strategy, Intravacc's vaccine project, if successful, could prevent the disease and significantly curb the spread of resistant bacteria across the globe."

The WHO Global Health Sector Strategy on Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI) has set goals for reducing gonorrhea incidence by vaccination by 90% by 2030. Gonorrhea is the world's second most reported STI, impacting about 82 million adults annually.

As of 2024, the U.S. FDA has not approved a gonorrhea vaccine.

However, a Research Letter published by the JAMA Network Infectious Diseases on August 31, 2023, concluded that the Outer Membrane Vesicles-based meningococcal group B vaccine was 47% (95% CI, 13%-68%) effective in preventing gonorrhea in young adults.

On November 10, 2023, the U.K.'s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation agreed that a targeted vaccination program should be initiated using the 4CMenB (Bexsero®) vaccine for the prevention of gonorrhea in those who are at most significant risk of infection. 

Intravacc is a global contract development and manufacturing organization at the Utrecht Science Park Bilthoven in the Netherlands. Intravacc is developing vaccines that target a range of diseases.