19 March 2019 - - UK-based vaccine R and D company ImmunoBiology Ltd (ImmBio) has recently signed a licensing agreement with LIBP (Lanzhou Institute of Biological Product) a subsidiary company under CNBG, the company said.

This partnership will enable ImmBio and LIBP to co-develop ImmBio's proprietary PnuBioVax vaccine against pneumococcal disease and launch the pneumococcal vaccine in the Greater China area upon completion of successful clinical studies.

This Sino-UK high-tech partnership deal has been possible as a result of the long-lasting successful relation between the companies and strong pre-clinical and Phase I clinical data obtained by ImmBio in the development of the pneumococcal vaccine to date.

In addition to the multi-m milestone and royalty payment agreement, the licensing agreement provides a strategic alliance for ImmBio, allowing access to the partner's strong technical ability and manufacturing capacity that could facilitate the development and commercialisation of the vaccine in the Rest of the World.

Pneumococcal disease, caused by the pathogenic bacteria Streptococcus pneumoniae, is a major cause of mortality with approximately 1.5m deaths every year.

This is higher than TB, HIV and malaria combined. It is also a major source of morbidity in high risk groups and the elderly.

Current vaccines target a limited number of the approximate 97 variants, known as serotypes, of the S. pneumoniae bacteria.

Although current vaccines are effective against the serotypes they target, between 10 and 23, they have lost efficacy over time due to replacement and higher incidence of non-vaccine serotypes.

Finally, current estimates indicate that pneumococcal bacteria are resistant to one or more antibiotics in 30% of the cases.

PnuBioVax vaccine aims to be the first vaccine in the market targeting all S. pneumoniae variants with the potential to tackle the antibiotic resistance problem at its source.

The pneumococcal vaccine partnership deal between CNBG and ImmBio will help to speed up the development process to produce an effective pneumococcal vaccine to fight the infection on a global scale.

ImmunoBiology Ltd is a vaccine company developing the next generation of anti-infective vaccines. The portfolio addresses areas of high unmet need, where the risk and consequence of infection are severe.

The company has an established product and process patent that enables the transition between an innate and an adaptive immunological response.

ImmBio has experienced executive and staff in its facilities in Cambridge and has built an impressive product portfolio backed by a solid and broad investor base and through collaborative agreements.

CNBG is the biological product arm of Sinopharm, China's largest pharmaceutical and healthcare group in China, with core business in pharmaceutical distribution, scientific research and manufacture of medical and biotech products.

CNBG is a vaccine manufacturer in China, having multiple production sites in eight major Chinese cities, focusing on R and D, manufacture and marketing of biological products.

The portfolio of CNBG includes vaccines, plasma-derived products, as well as medical aesthetics products and diagnostic reagents. LIBP was founded in 1934 and is currently a subsidiary of CNBG.