Australian vaccine development company BioDiem has announced the product launch of Changchun BCHT Biotechnology’s LAIV vaccine in China.
Melbourne-based BioDiem said the launch is a major milestone for it and BCHT.
BCHT holds an exclusive licence from BioDiem for the influenza technology based on the live attenuated influenza virus (LAIV) vaccine technology. BCHT’s licence covers the private sector market of China for pandemic and seasonal influenza vaccines made using an egg-based production method. BCHT holds a complementary licence to the LAIV for the public market in China via a sublicence from the World Health Organisation.
BioDiem said it will receive royalties from the sale of the vaccine product in the China private sector market.
BCHT’s intranasal seasonal flu vaccine is based on the World Health Organization’s recommendations for the 2020-2021 ‘flu season. BCHT gained marketing approval for its LAIV vaccine from the Chinese National Medical Products Administration (formerly known as the Chinese FDA) in February this year.
Dr Kong Wei, the CEO of Changchun BCHT Biotechnology, said, "This is the first needle-free, intranasal and homebred influenza vaccine launched in China. I hope that with its effectiveness and acceptability, the vaccine will help prevent more people getting influenza infection giving them a healthier life, especially under the current circumstance of the COVID-19 pandemic."
BioDiem CEO, Julie Phillips, said, “We heartily congratulate BCHT on this major product launch and recognise the significant effort of the BCHT team to get to this achievement. The value of a vaccine in preventing a highly contagious infectious disease is recognised now more than ever.”