The largest drugmaker in France and a U.S. company with which it is partnered are expanding on an existing partnership to develop vaccines based on messenger RNA.
Paris-based Sanofi’s vaccine unit, Sanofi Pasteur, and Lexington, Massachusetts-based Translate Bio said Tuesday that they would build on the partnership they originally formed in 2018 to develop mRNA vaccines against infectious diseases, including Covid-19.
Under the expanded deal, Sanofi will pay Translate $425 million upfront, along with up to $1.9 billion in milestone payments and royalties on worldwide sales. The milestones include about $360 million, part of which would come from development of a Covid-19 vaccine. Sanofi will pay for all costs, and in exchange will receive exclusive worldwide rights to vaccines.
Shares of Translate Bio were up more than 15% on the Nasdaq after markets opened Wednesday. Shares of Sanofi were down more than 2% on the Euronext Paris exchange.
“As all eyes are on prevention of infectious disease through vaccines, this is a pointed moment in time where we are called upon to seek innovative ways to protect public health,” said Thomas Triomphe, executive vice president of Sanofi Pasteur, in a statement. “We are excited by the novel technology and expertise Translate Bio brings, and we believe that adding this mRNA platform to our vaccines development capabilities will help us advance prevention against current and future infectious diseases.”
Sanofi and Translate said in late March that they would collaborate to develop an mRNA vaccine against Covid-19. The two companies are among several using the approach: Moderna is the furthest along, with plans to enter its mRNA vaccine, mRNA-1273, into Phase III clinical trials in July. Other firms developing mRNA vaccines include Pfizer and its German partner, BioNTech. Experts have said that among the various approaches to developing Covid-19 vaccines – which include DNA, viral vectors and others – mRNA represents a faster, easier approach. Some companies, including Moderna and Tianjin, China-based CanSino Biologics, have released preliminary results or published data on their vaccines as well.
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
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