After decades of stagnancy in the herpes therapeutics space, a real neck-and-neck race is emerging among three biotechs in the immunotherapy space: Genocea and Agenus, both based in Massachusetts, San Diego’s Vical are speeding ahead in developing a herpes vaccine.
The idea for these companies is to develop a therapeutic vaccine targeted toward individuals who already have herpes – but the ultimate goal for each company’s platform is to delve into a population-wide preventative vaccine of the sexually transmitted infection.
On top of that, Australian biotech Admedus just announced positive early clinical results for its own genital herpes vaccine. And Oregon’s Tomegavax is using Gates-funded research to forge its own path in developing its own vaccine.
With the Rise of AI, What IP Disputes in Healthcare Are Likely to Emerge?
Munck Wilson Mandala Partner Greg Howison shared his perspective on some of the legal ramifications around AI, IP, connected devices and the data they generate, in response to emailed questions.
The tight competition’s indicative of a lucrative market. Herpes, a chronic viral infection, impacts some 50 million Americans in the U.S. Indeed, one in six Americans between the ages of 14 and 49 have the disease.
But in terms of treatment and vaccination, herpes been a notoriously difficult disease. Big pharma dabbled in developing a genital herpes vaccine, but GlaxoSmithKline was particularly noteworthy for its epic flop – compared to controls, it actually caused even worse outbreaks in the women studied in a huge Phase III study. This is why the recent advances in herpes vaccine development are particularly promising.
The “whys” of this come down to how the herpes virus, and most vaccines, operate: Herpes spends the majority of its time hiding out in the nerve cells, evading the immune response quite effectively, then pouring out en masse during a recurrent viral shedding period. This is when an infected individual is the most contagious.
Now, standard vaccines usually corral the immune system’s B cells, siccing them on invaders and successfully drawing out antibody responses. However, this method hasn’t impacted the course of herpes. What the newer methods of vaccination are doing is mobilizing the T cell response to reduce the viral load.
A Personalized Approach to Medication Nonadherence
At the Abarca Forward conference earlier this year, George Van Antwerp, managing director at Deloitte, discussed how social determinants of health and a personalized member experience can improve medication adherence and health outcomes.
Genocea may have a few toes ahead in the race, but the triumvirate’s all in the Phase II vicinity and eliciting positive results. They’ve got similar trial protocol, to boot.
Stay tuned for a closer look at what’s going on with the herpes vaccine, with insights from stakeholders and CEOs. Here are a few:
Herpes vaccine maker Genocea reports positive results a year after the first dose
Immunotherapy for STI treatment: Agenus CEO on its genital herpes vaccine
