University of Oxford and Serum Institute of India sign a global licence to develop R78C, advancing next-generation multi-stage malaria vaccine development and manufacturing.
Written By: Pharmacally Medical News Desk
The University of Oxford, through Oxford University Innovation, has entered into a licensing agreement with the Serum Institute of India (SII) to support the development and manufacture of the malaria vaccine candidate R78C.
This candidate is based on two Plasmodium falciparum blood-stage antigens, RIPR and CyPRA, and will be developed as part of a next-generation multi-stage malaria vaccine targeting different stages of the parasite lifecycle.
Under the non-exclusive, worldwide licence, SII will contribute to clinical development, large-scale manufacturing, and potential future commercialisation. The University of Oxford and Serum Institute of India have also partnered to advance the ChAdOx1 Nipah vaccine, further extending their collaboration following earlier work on the R21 and RH5.1 malaria vaccine candidates.
Researchers at Oxford, led by Professor Simon Draper, developed R78C and aim to improve vaccine efficacy and durability by combining multiple antigens that act at different stages of infection. He indicated that collaboration with SII will be important to enable scalable production and broad access if the vaccine is successful.
From the industry perspective, SII’s Dr. Umesh Shaligram highlighted the need for continued innovation in malaria vaccines, particularly approaches that address multiple lifecycle stages, and noted that the agreement supports the development of more effective and accessible solutions.
Dr. Matthew Carpenter of Oxford University Innovation added that the partnership represents progress in advancing a multi-stage vaccine by integrating R78C with existing components and translating academic research into practical global health applications.
In parallel, SII has also secured access to the proprietary ExpreS2 expression platform from ExpreS2ion Biotechnologies, which has been used in the clinical-stage production of RH5.1 and R78C components.
The collaboration reflects a broader effort to develop scalable and affordable malaria vaccines, particularly for low- and middle-income countries, where the disease remains a major public health challenge with a high burden of cases and mortality.
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