Pfizer Initiates Phase 2/3 Clinical Trial of COVID-19 Treatment

African Company to Manufacture J&J’s COVID-19 Vaccine  

Janssen Pharmaceuticals recently partnered with South African-based Aspen SA Operations to enable the first COVID-19 vaccine manufacturing by an African company for individuals living in Africa. 

Currently, just 12% of people in Africa are fully vaccinated, falling well below the World Health Organization’s target of 70% population coverage for all countries.  

Under the terms of the agreement, Aspen can produce an Aspen-branded finished vaccine and make doses available to the public sector in Africa, including 25 member states of the African Union and key multilateral entities supporting the country’s COVID-19 vaccination drive.  

“We initiated clinical trials in all regions of the world to generate evidence across multiple geographies and diverse, at-risk populations and forged a strategic partnership with Aspen in Africa and others to manufacture our vaccine globally,” Martin Fitchet, MD, head of global public health at Johnson & Johnson, Cilag GmbH International, said in the announcement.  

“We’re proud to take our long-standing collaboration with Aspen to the next level, to continue to address the COVID-19 threat and lay the groundwork for a healthier, more secure future for people in Africa,” Fitchet continued.  

To date, Johnson & Johnson shipped over 200 million vaccine doses to Africa through a combination of advanced purchase agreements with the African Vaccine Acquisition Trust, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and other government donations. 

Thermo Fisher Develops Viral Inactivation to Safely Transport COVID-19 Samples 

Thermo Fisher Scientific’s InhibiSURE Viral Inactivation Medium formula to reduce the risk of exposure during COVID-19 sample transport and process is now available in Europe.  

The rapid transport medium uses a non-hazardous formulation and leakproof format during the collection and inactivation of patient COVID-19 samples. The medium also stabilizes viral RNA at ambient temperatures for transport and in vitro diagnostic testing procedures.   

This single-use device can sample patients suspected of being infected with SARS-CoV-2 or sample individuals for population screening for SARS-CoV-2. Notably, the device is strictly for professional use only.  

“InhibiSURE Viral Inactivation Medium enables us to support a safe and efficient sample collection and transport process by rapidly inactivating the SARS-CoV-2 virus using a non-hazardous formulation,” Duncan Porter, general manager, sample collection and transport for Thermo Fisher’s microbiology business, said in the announcement. 

“To broaden the scope of those capabilities, we’ve prioritized the expansion of the range of viruses, as well as the ability to do at-home collection as future developments,” Porter continued.  

InhibiSURE Viral Inactivation Medium helps keep staff safe with a non-hazardous formula, provides a convenient format that can be used with unprocessed nasal swabs, boosts simplicity by removing the need for de-activation steps, and is suitable to use with bead and column-based PCR systems. 

Thermo Fisher Scientific highlighted its plans of launching the device in other regions, pending relevant regulatory approvals.