ReNewVax’s Chief Scientific Officer Dr Marie O’Brien is published in this autumn’s edition of Drug Target Review, sharing insights into our quest for a universal pneumococcal vaccine.
‘Why innovation is the key to unlocking a universal pneumococcal vaccine’ details how the principle of reverse vaccinology – employing rational design in lieu of the classical hypothesis-led approach to vaccine development – will be pivotal in the creation of new vaccines that the developing world so badly needs.
In the piece, Dr Marie O’Brien discusses the pressing issues facing the healthcare community in terms of vaccines, such as the need to make the case for comprehensive use of existing vaccines to tackle things like current measles cases in London which threaten to cause huge outbreaks if vaccination rates do not improve.
Marie also discusses the challenges involved with developing bacterial vaccines, from the impracticality of developing vaccines against individual pathogens, to the expensive manufacturing costs which are beyond the reach of the low- and middle-income countries that need them most.
Posing reverse vaccinology as a solution to these challenges, Marie highlights ReNewVax’s lead programme, RVX-001, which is focused on the development of a novel protein-based, universal pneumococcal vaccine.
She says, “We are proud to be part of an industry that is working hard to deliver the tools that could build a healthier and more prosperous world.”
To read the feature, download this edition of Drug Target Review: https://www.drugtargetreview.com/article/111495/drug-target-review-issue-3-2023/