SK bioscience seeks vaccine breakthrough with Australian partner

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SK bioscience seeks vaccine breakthrough with Australian partner

Published: 27 Jun. 2023, 14:12 Updated: 27 Jun. 2023, 14:45

SK bioscience CEO Ahn Jae-yong, left, poses with Professor Sharon Lewin, director of the Doherty Institute after signing an agreement on Monday. [SK BIOSCIENCE]

SK bioscience has signed an agreement with the Australia-based Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity to cooperate on influenza vaccine development.

The organizations will work together to support and further research in influenza biology, vaccines, and antivirals, the Korean company said Tuesday.

The program will include the testing of anti-influenza compounds to identify new antivirals, capacity building in low- and middle-income countries, and the development of a new influenza vaccine platform.

The Doherty Institute is a leading biomedical research institute located in Australia, home to researchers from the Royal Melbourne Hospital and the University of Melbourne, and to one of five World Health Organization Collaborating Centres for Reference and Research Influenza.

“We expect a synergy with our capability in developing the world's first quadrivalent cell culture-based influenza vaccine and the infrastructure of the Doherty Institute," said SK bioscience CEO Ahn Jae-yong. "We will strengthen global partnerships with various organizations and continuously expand cooperative areas to establish a response system against infectious disease pandemics in the world.”

The global influenza vaccine market is expected to grow at an annual rate of 8.8 percent to reach $13.6 billion in 2029, according to data from the market tracker Fortune Business Insight.

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