ImmBio gets Biomedical Catalyst support to develop pneumococcal vaccine PnuBioVax

Immunobiology (ImmBio), a UK-based biopharmaceutical company, has bagged £0.2m in funding from the UK government-backed Biomedical Catalyst (BBC) for the pre-clinical development of pneumococcal vaccine PnuBioVax.

The pharma company had also received £1m from the government agency for the development of novel meningococcal B vaccine, MenBioVax in late 2012.

ImmBio’s vaccine candidates are based on its proprietary ImmBioVax technology platform, which uses novel cell-culture production processes to stress the target bacterial pathogen, mimicking the natural immune response to infection.

ImmBio CEO Graham Clarke said that the company is glad to receive funding from the UK government in order to progress the development of novel vaccines.

“This most recent award recognizes the need for effective new vaccines against invasive pneumococcal disease, and the potential of our technology to protect against a wide range of disease-causing strains,” Clarke added.

The Biomedical Catalyst is a program of public funding managed jointly by the UK’s innovation agency, the Technology Strategy Board, and the Medical Research Council.