Immuno Cure BioTech, a clinical-stage biotechnology group based in Hong Kong Science Park, announced on Thursday its upcoming collaboration with US-based PharmaJet to evaluate the safety and immunogenicity of HIV therapeutic DNA vaccine ICVAX delivered via PharmaJet's innovative Tropis needle-free injection system in a clinical study.

ICVAX employs Immuno Cure's patented PD-1-Enhanced DNA Vaccine technology, which aims to achieve sustained, immune-mediated HIV-1 virological control without the need for antiretroviral therapy (ART). The company says that following the successful first-in-human ICVAX Phase I clinical trial that showed exceptional safety and immunogenicity profiles, this new clinical study will explore the use of the WHO prequalified PharmaJet Tropis device for the administration of ICVAX, which allows precise intradermal delivery through its advanced needle-free technology. Tropis' global regulatory clearances and manufacturing scale reduce development risk and may improve the DNA vaccine performance and patient's clinical experience.

This study will be conducted at Prince of Wales Hospital in Hong Kong SAR, led by Professor Grace LUI, head of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the Faculty of Medicine, the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). The study is a collaborative effort between Immuno Cure, CUHK, and the AIDS Institute of the University of Hong Kong, and is partially supported by the funding from the Public Sector Trial Scheme of the Innovation and Technology Commission of the HKSAR Government. Professor Zhiwei CHEN, director of the AIDS Institute of the University of Hong Kong, serves as the project coordinator for this funding.