Glaxosmithkline Plc Collaborate With CEPI For The 2019-nCoV Virus Vaccine

GlaxoSmithKline Plc, a British drug maker and healthcare company, has announced the collaboration to work with the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations. GlaxoSmithKline Plc and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations will work to contribute their effort for creating a vaccine for the 2019-nCoV virus epidemics.

According to the GlaxoSmithKline Plc, it is planning to use its adjuvant platform technology which is available for the development of a vaccine against the 2019-nCoV virus. The adjuvant platform technology is being used for developing more vaccine in less time; hence it will help to produce more vaccine doses and would enhance availability to more affected patients.

The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) will coordinate activities between entities financed by it and GlaxoSmithKline Plc. However, it is for those who are ready to test their vaccine platform with GSK’s adjuvant technology to create efficient vaccines to fight against the 2019-nCoV virus. In January 2019, the first deal was signed between Australia’s University of Queensland and GlaxoSmithKline Plc, to create a “molecular clamp” vaccine platform. The agreement between the two was planned to allow rapid vaccine manufacturing to counter multiple viral pathogens. However, CEPI has stretched this financing for the 2019-nCoV virus vaccine, and GlaxoSmithKline Plc’s adjuvant technology will assist in this primary phase of research.

As per the media report, this epidemics like virus has already killed over 300 people in China and is spreading very fast to other countries as well. Due to this Virus, the world’s second-biggest economy, China is facing business shutdowns and travel curbs. However, vaccines are not available for the treatment against the 2019-nCoV virus, but numerous groups, including CEPI, based in Norway, are working at developing one. Various countries are working to find a cure to the virus and Pasteur Institute Foundation of France has said that it has formed a team which is targeting to develop a vaccine to fight against the virus in twenty months. On the same time, Germany’s has stated that it anticipates a vaccine to be developed within “a few months”.

Meanwhile, the Chief Executive Officer of CEPI, Dr Richard Hatchett, stated that “receiving help from GSK’s world-prominent adjuvant technology is a big step ahead in creating a vaccine against the 2019-nCoV virus.” GSK Vaccines’ President too stated that they trust in the importance of CEPI, which can support in countering epidemic like the 2019-nCOV virus and expressed his pleasure in participating with the University of Queensland’s scientists for cutting edge research. He also said that the company is ready to support other collaborators, with promising vaccine program that could be used with adjuvant.

Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI)

Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) is an innovative partnership between private, public, civil and philanthropic organisations, launched at Davos in the year 2017. It was established to create vaccines to prevent future pandemic outbreaks. CEPI’s priority diseases include Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus, Lassa virus, Nipah virus, Ebola virus, Rift Valley Fever and Chikungunya virus. CEPI has achieved more than US$0.75 billion of its targeted $1 billion financing. Till today, CEPI has pledged to invest more than $0.46 billion in platform and vaccine development.

The 2019-nCoV virus

The 2019-nCoV virus are virus family that can lead to breathing illness, which includes Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV). The 2019-nCoV virus spreads between people & animals and can develop into strains, which were not earlier identified in humans. A coronavirus (the 2019-nCoV virus) was discovered on January 7, 2020, in Wuhan City of China.

Overview of GlaxoSmithKline Plc

GlaxoSmithKline Plc (LON:GSK) is a famous global healthcare company, which aims to help people to do more, live longer and feel healthier. The company is working on three international businesses, Consumer Healthcare, Pharmaceuticals and Vaccines. The company’s vaccines business has a strong pioneering and portfolio pipeline to safeguard humans all across their life. GSK provides more than two million vaccine doses each day to humans in over one sixty countries.

GSK – News Updates

On 03rd February 2020, the company announced that It issued share capital, consisting of 5,384 million shares of 25 pence each as at 31st January 2020. Out of which, 393.5 million Ordinary shares were held in Treasury. Hence, the total number of voting rights in the company is 4,990.5 million shares.

The company on 8th January 2020, informed that Deborah Waterhouse, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of international specialist Human Immunodeficiency Virus company, ViiV Healthcare, entered Corporate Executive Team of the company.

Deborah Waterhouse joined the GlaxoSmithKline Plc in the year 1996 and has worked in numerous commercial leadership positions in Asia-Pacific, the USA and Europe. She has a sound performance record in both primary care & specialty medicines and gives further commercial attention to the Corporate Executive Team.

GSK - Share Price-performance

At the time of writing, on 03rd February 2020 as at 08:47 AM (GMT), the stock of GSK was trading at GBX 1,780.40 per share on the London Stock Exchange, down by of 0.20 per cent or GBX 3.60 per share, versus previous day’s closing price of GBX 1,784.0 per share.

The market capitalisation of the company was recorded at GBP 89.01 billion at the time of writing. The outstanding shares and free float of GlaxoSmithKline Plc were recorded at 4.99bn and 4.94bn, respectively.

The share price of GSK’s recorded GBX 1,857.0 as on 24th January 2020, was its 1-year peak price, whereas the share price recorded at GBX 1,472.80 as on 04th February 2019 was the 1-year low share price. The current share price was higher by 4.12 per cent from the 1-year low price; whereas the current share price was higher by 20.88 per cent from the 1-year low price.

The beta of the stock of the company has been reported at a value of 0.84, which means that GSK stock has shown lower volatility in its movement, as compared to the volatility of the comparative index in the last twelve months.