A vaccine is a biological preparation that improves immunity to a particular disease. A vaccine typically contains an agent that resembles a disease-causing microorganism, and is often made from weakened or killed forms of the microbe. The agent stimulates the body's immune system to recognize the agent as foreign, destroy it, and "remember" it, so that the immune system can more easily recognize and destroy any of these microorganisms that it later encounters.
Vaccines can be prophylactic (e.g. to prevent or ameliorate the effects of a future infection by any natural or "wild" pathogen), or therapeutic (e.g. vaccines against cancer). I wrote an article titled "3 Vaccine Companies With Near Term Catalysts" on September 4. In this article I will feature three additional vaccine companies with upcoming catalysts.
1. Sinovac Biotech (SVA) is a China-based biopharmaceutical company that focuses on the research, development, manufacturing and commercialization of vaccines that protect against human infectious diseases including hepatitis A and B, seasonal influenza, H5N1 pandemic influenza (avian flu) and H1N1 influenza (swine flu), as well as animal rabies vaccine for canines.
In 2009, Sinovac was the first company worldwide to receive approval for its H1N1 influenza vaccine, Panflu, and has manufactured it for the Chinese Central Government, pursuant to the government-stockpiling program. The company is also the only supplier of the H5N1 pandemic influenza vaccine to the government-stockpiling program. Sinovac is developing a number of new pipeline vaccines including vaccines for enterovirus 71 (against hand, foot and mouth disease), pneumococcal conjugate, pneumococcal polysaccharides, mumps and rubella. Sinovac sells its vaccines mainly in China and exports selected vaccines to Mongolia, Nepal, and the Philippines.
Upcoming catalysts
The company commenced an enterovirus 71 Phase III trial in January 2012, which is anticipated to be completed in the first half of 2013.
Enterovirus 71 causes
