SK bioscience's Covid vaccine approved by UK regulator

SKYCovion, Korea’s first homegrown Covid-19 vaccine developed by SK bioscience [SK BIOSCIENCE]

SKYCovion, Korea’s first homegrown Covid-19 vaccine, was approved for sale by Britain's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), developer SK bioscience said Tuesday.

It is the first time a domestic vaccine has gained an official green light in a foreign country.

Under the MHRA's permission, SKYCovion is authorized for persons aged 18 years or older living in England, Scotland and Wales. It has become the eighth Covid-19 vaccine approved by the MHRA.

SKYCovion, the protein-based vaccine developed with GlaxoSmithKline's pandemic adjuvant, can be stored in normal refrigerators at 2 to 8 degrees Celsius, in contrast to Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, which use mRNA technology and require extremely low temperatures to remain effective.

This helps achieve vaccine equity and vaccination coverage in low-income countries, SK bioscience said. Some 70.1 percent of people in low-income countries have yet to be vaccinated.

“This is the result of our commitment to protecting and promoting global public health," SK bioscience CEO Ahn Jae-yong said. "We are confident it will be the milestone to solidify our position in the global market amid the transition of the pandemic to the endemic phase.”

SK bioscience is currently waiting for emergency use approval from the World Health Organization and marketing authorization from the European Medicines Agency.

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]