Walvax Biotechnology Co., Ltd.

Back in October, when small interfering RNA player Sirnaomics landed its Series D round, CEO Patrick Lu said he was open to preparing for an IPO “in (the) near future.” Those S-1 papers never came, and now Lu’s taking another trip down VC lane. Sirnaomics unveiled a $105 million Series E round on Thursday, led by the same firm that led the last megaround: Rotating Boulder Fund. The biotech says it will pump the funds into its RNAi portfolio aimed at treating cancers, viral infections, fibrosis and metabolic diseases. siRNA therapeutics were popularized by Alnylam, which scored the first OK in the field with Onpattro back in 2018. Scott Gottlieb, FDA commissioner at the time, said the approval was “part of a broader wave of advances that allow us to treat disease by actually targeting the root cause.” Patrick Lu siRNA kicks off action in the RNA-induced silencing complex, which then goes on to cleave a specific mRNA, thereby downregulating target genes. But Sirnaomics thinks it has a better vehicle to carry the siRNA cargo to cells — a polypeptide nanoparticle, or PNP. The peptide is biodegradable, offers protection to the siRNA while in the bloodstream, and can carry multiple siRNA sequences, allowing the company’s products to go after multiple genes at once. Sirnaomics’ lead candidates — STP705 and STP707 — are dual targeting siRNAs against TGF-β1 and COX-2, and can be administered locally or systemically. In December, the company said Phase IIa results showed that STP705 helped clear tumor cells in patients with squamous cell skin cancer. “Based on successful clinical and preclinical studies, a future clinical focus will be targeted towards immune oncological evaluation, with combination design of the novel RNAi drug candidate and immune checkpoint inhibitors, such as PD-1/PD-L1 monoclonal antibodies,” Sirnaomics said. The Gaithersburg, MD-based biotech has a slate of other candidates in the works to treat a range of conditions, from Covid-19 to cardiometabolic diseases. Back in April, Lu struck a co-development deal with Walvax Biotechnology for its antiviral siRNA candidate STP702. “At Sirnaomics specifically, we are forging a path to bring RNAi therapeutics to the mainstream as therapeutic modalities for treatment of many diseases, such as non-melanoma skin cancer, liver cancer, liver fibrosis and NASH,” Lu said in 2019, shortly after nabbing a $47 million Series C round. He followed that up with a $105 million Series D just last year. Though headquartered in Maryland, Sirnaomics has subsidiaries in Suzhou and Guangzhou, China. The company wasn’t available for an interview before press time, but Lu mentioned in a statement that the company is entering its “next phase of growth.” Could that mean an IPO? Looks like we’ll have to wait and see.

Dublin, June 17, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Global Pneumococcal Vaccine Market (2021-2026) by type of the Vaccine, Product, Sectors, Distribution Channel, Geography, Competitive Analysis and the Impact of COVID-19 with Ansoff Analysis" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The Global Pneumococcal Vaccine Market is estimated to be USD 8.4 Bn in 2021 and is expected to reach USD 11.8 Bn by 2026, growing at a CAGR of 7%.The factors such as the rising prevalence of pneumococcal diseases amongst the population and the introduction of novel vaccines have supported the growth of the market. The growing awareness programs about pneumococcal diseases initiated by the Government are also boosting the market growth. Moreover, the development of novel vaccines, trials, and launches with improved serotype coverage shall bring about growth opportunities in this market and help improve the coverage rate.However, the longer timelines taken to introduce a vaccine and the attached costs in the development of the vaccines hinders the growth of this market. Segments CoveredBy Vaccine, Conjugate Vaccines are anticipated to account as the fastest-growing segment during the forecasted period. They are considered to be more robust over polysaccharide ones and hence are more preferred leading to high demand. It also covers a wide age group as it can vaccinate an infant from 6 weeks old to 5years of age and for people over 50 + age groups, reducing asymptomatic delivery of the bacteria, and thus resulting in marked group immunity.By Product Type, Prevnar-13 is estimated to account for the fastest-growing segment during the forecasted period as it is recommended by the WHO as an efficient vaccine against pneumonia and has therefore been the widely adopted 13 - valent PCV vaccines across the world. It has also been used as an essential vaccine for people above 50 age groups.By Sector, the Private Sector is considered to be the largest segment contributing to the growth during the forecasted period. It is mainly due to the high number of private hospitals and clinics. The cost at which a vaccine is sold in a private hospital and/or a clinic is comparatively high with regards to NGO or Government aided centers resulting in high growth activities.By the Distribution channel, the Non-Governmental Organizations are anticipated to account for the fastest growth during the forecasted period with the presence of UNICEF, GAVI, and the WHO. They are major promoters of this Vaccine by distributing the Vaccine from the source(manufacturer) to the destination(locational geographies), which have propelled the demand of this segment.By Geography, North America is anticipated to have the largest market share. The factors promoting the growth of this market are an established healthcare system, high investments in the R&D sector, followed by the Government initiatives. For example, the US has called upon an initiative of the Healthy People 2020 goals to increase pneumococcal vaccination coverage to 60% in high-risk adults aged i.e. 18-64?years and to 90% in people aged ??65?years. Additionally, with a rising number of pneumonia cases, there has been an increased awareness about immunization, which has further contributed to market growth. Company ProfilesSome of the companies covered in this report are Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline PLC, Merck & Co. Inc., Sanofi Pasteur, Nuron Biotech Inc., CSL Ltd., Biomed Pvt. Ltd., China National Biotec Group, and Serum Institute of India Pvt. Ltd.Competitive QuadrantThe report includes a Competitive Quadrant, a proprietary tool to analyze and evaluate the position of companies based on their Industry Position score and Market Performance score. The tool uses various factors for categorizing the players into four categories. Some of these factors considered for analysis are financial performance over the last 3 years, growth strategies, innovation score, new product launches, investments, growth in market share, etc.Lions: Represents companies with a strong foothold in the market, with the highest market share, large investments in technologies, new products.Bulls: Companies that are medium in size competing with their USPs, growing companies with proven market share.Rabbits: Small companies but growing rapidly, constantly improving their offerings in the market.Tortoise: Companies that are slow in growth, having a long legacy, and stable or negative in performance.Why buy this report? Report Highlights: Key Topics Covered: 1 Report Description2 Research Methodology 3 Executive Summary4 Market Overview4.1 Introduction 4.2 Market Dynamics4.2.1 Drivers4.2.2 Restraints4.2.3 Opportunities4.2.4 Challenges4.3 Trends5 Market Analysis5.1 Porter's Five Forces Analysis5.2 Impact of COVID-195.3 Ansoff Matrix Analysis6 Global Pneumococcal Vaccine Market, By Vaccine Type6.1 Introduction 6.2 Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV)6.3 Pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPSV/PPV)7 Global Pneumococcal Vaccine Market, By Product Type7.1 Introduction7.2 Prevnar 137.3 Synflorix7.4 Pneumovax 238 Global Pneumococcal Vaccine Market, By Sectors8.1 Introduction 8.2 Public Sector8.3 Private Sector9 Global Pneumococcal Vaccine Market, By Distribution Channels9.1 Introduction9.2 Distributor Partner Companies9.3 Non-governmental Organizations (NGO)9.4 Government Authorities10 Global Pneumococcal Vaccine Market, By Geography10.1 Introduction10.2 North America10.2.1 US10.2.2 Canada10.2.3 Mexico10.3 South America10.3.1 Brazil10.3.2 Argentina10.4 Europe10.4.1 UK10.4.2 France10.4.3 Germany10.4.4 Italy10.4.5 Rest of Europe10.5 Asia-Pacific10.5.1 China10.5.2 Japan10.5.3 India10.5.4 Australia10.5.5 Rest of APAC10.6 Middle East and Africa11 Competitive Landscape11.1 Competitive Quadrants11.2 Market Share Analysis11.3 Competitive Scenario11.3.1 Mergers & Acquisitions11.3.2 Agreements, Collaborations, & Partnerships11.3.3 New Product Launches & Enhancements11.3.4 Investments& Fundings12 Company Profiles12.1 GlaxoSmithKline Plc.12.2 LG Chem Ltd.12.3 Merck & Co., Inc.12.4 Panacea Biotec Limited12.5 Pfizer Inc12.6 Pnuvax Incorporated12.7 Serum Institute of India Pvt. Ltd.12.8 Shenzhen Kangtai Biological Products Co., Ltd. (Beijing Minhai Biotechnology Corporation Limited)12.9 Sk Bioscience12.10 Walvax Biotechnology Co., Ltd. 12.11 Nuron Biotech Inc., 12.12 CSL Ltd.12.13 Biomed Pvt. Ltd 12.14 Sanofi Pasteur 12.15 China National Biotec Group 12.16 Astellas Pharma Inc12.17 AstraZeneca PLC12.18 Emergent BioSolutions Inc12.19 Johnson & Johnson 13 Appendix For more information about this report visit

GSK and Walvax have entered into a long-term joint venture (JV) to serve the Chinese vaccine market, with the big pharma transferring technology to enable local production and building a manufacturing plant. The joint venture strengthens GlaxoSmithKline’s (GSK) position in two growth areas, China and vaccines, and is in keeping with the pharma’s recent strategy. GSK has signed a similar deal with China-based Shenzhen Neptunus Interlong Bio-Technique to develop and manufacture flu vaccines. By making these deals Jean Stephenne, president of GSK Biologicals, believes the company can establish a presence in China “ in advance of the significant expansion in the Chinese public vaccine market ​”. In 2008 the Chinese Ministry of Health’s incorporated the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine into its immunisation programme following its pledge to eradicate measles by 2012. GSK is anticipating that this will drive growth in the Chinese vaccine market. Under the terms of the deal with Walvax the partners will invest £41.2m ($65.5m) in the joint venture upon fulfilment of certain conditions. This investment includes an initial £20.1m from GSK, and further £7.3m by 2015, and a total of £13.8m from Walvax. Some of this investment will be used to build a manufacturing facility for GSK’s paediatric MMR vaccine Priorix. Once the facility is complete it will supply vaccines to the Chinese market. The partners are also working to develop and manufacture paediatric vaccines for the Chinese market. GSK is transferring technology to allow the joint venture to manufacture vaccines locally. Collaborating with Walvax gives GSK access to local knowledge and expertise. Walvax has operated in the Chinese vaccine market since 2001 and has experience of freeze-drying technologies, which make preservation and transportation easier. Based on their respective investments GSK will receive 65 per cent of equity interest. In addition the agreement includes provisions for both companies to revise their equity share in the future.