Valneva pays $10M for LimmaTech's Shigella vaccine

Valneva has expanded its vaccine portfolio by acquiring the global license for a Shigella vaccine candidate from LimmaTech for 10 million euros ($10.7 million). This vaccine, Shigella4V, was initially part of a partnership with GSK. Currently, there is no approved vaccine for Shigella, which is the second leading cause of fatal diarrheal disease globally. Shigella4V is a tetravalent bioconjugate vaccine that demonstrated promising interim results in a phase 1/2 trial earlier this year.

In addition to the upfront payment, LimmaTech stands to receive milestone payments and low double-digit royalties on sales if Shigella4V reaches the market. The agreement stipulates that LimmaTech will conduct two phase 2 trials this year: a controlled human infection model and a pediatric study in low- and middle-income countries, where Shigella is most prevalent.

Valneva CEO Thomas Lingelbach expressed satisfaction with the partnership, describing it as a significant step in addressing unmet medical needs. He noted that Shigella4V has the potential to become the first-in-class vaccine for Shigella, benefitting both low- and middle-income countries as well as travelers. Lingelbach also highlighted that the development plan for Shigella4V is designed to be staggered and risk-mitigated, facilitating efficient capital allocation. Valneva aims to have a new R&D program in phase 3 by 2027.

The journey of Shigella4V began at LimmaTech, a company that spun out from GlycoVaxyn after its acquisition by GSK in 2015. Initially, GSK had included the candidate in its development pipeline and supported LimmaTech with a research agreement in conjunction with the Wellcome Trust. However, a year ago, GSK decided to return the candidate to LimmaTech to focus on its own vaccine development.

LimmaTech CEO Franz-Werner Haas expressed enthusiasm for advancing Shigella4V with Valneva, having developed the vaccine candidate from its early discovery phase to its current promising clinical data. Haas believes that this partnership will accelerate the program, bringing it closer to addressing a significant global health challenge.

Valneva, having experienced setbacks with its COVID-19 vaccine, which was only approved in the U.K. in 2022, is hopeful for better outcomes with its other vaccine candidates. The French biotech company is set to launch its chikungunya virus vaccine this year. Valneva also markets vaccines for cholera and Japanese encephalitis and has candidates for Lyme disease and Zika virus in clinical development.