Aussie scientist Nikolai Petrovsky backed on Covid-19 jabs

Flinders University professor Nikolai Petrovsky. Picture: Roy Van Der Vegt

• EXCLUSIVE

  NATASHA ROBINSON

  HEALTH EDITOR

  @NC_Robinson

  
• 9:10PM AUGUST 24, 2021
• 65 COMMENTS

The country’s biggest Australian-owned pharmaceutical company has struck a deal to back a Covid-19 vaccine developed by an Adelaide scientist as part of a $500m manufacturing proposal.

Arrotex Pharmaceuticals is poised to sign a memorandum of understanding with Nikolai Petrovsky, a professor at Flinders University who has developed a protein-based Covid-19 vaccine which has just begun phase 3 human trials.

Professor Petrovsky’s vaccine is the first Australian-developed candidate to progress to phase 3 trials after the vaccine demonstrated high efficacy and safety during phase 2 studies.

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Dennis Bastas, Arrotex’s founding chair and CEO, said the Vaccine Centre of Excellence would be a dual-vaccine technology park that would have the capacity to manufacture both mRNA vaccines and viral vector vaccines, as well as other gene therapies for cancer and other diseases.

Arrotex has submitted the proposal to the federal government. “Our submission is not just to build an mRNA vaccine facility, but to build an independent viral vector and mRNA vaccine platform where the best and brightest scientists can get access to it,” Mr Bastas said.

“We don’t want to own the technology or intellectual property. Our goal in the facility is to build an independent platform that assists and collaborates with those who have got the smarts and the capacity to come up with these medicines and support them in being able to get the largest value out of their discoveries.”

The facility would be made available to all Australia-based researchers, with foundational members including Flinders University, the University of Melbourne, Monash University and the Doherty Institute.

These medical research partners would access the facility to undertake trials of new mRNA and viral vector vaccine formulations. As well as Covid-19 vaccines, these therapies could be developed for the treatment of neurological diseases, various cancer types, gene therapy and other diseases. There is currently no home-based scientific trialling and manufacturing facility for these vaccines and therapies.

Mr Bastas said the facility would ensure Australia had sovereign supply of Covid-19 vaccines and also would also provide tax revenue opportunities and attract international investment, create a new advanced manufacturing industry and spawn an export trade sector in vaccines and gene therapies.

He said Arrotex had decided to back Professor Petrovsky’s vaccine after hearing of its effectiveness. “I heard about Professor Petrovsky’s vaccine candidate from my international business partners, he hadn’t gotten a lot of attention here in Australia,” Mr Bastas said. “And their reviews of it were that it’s got to be one of the best vaccine candidates they’d seen.”

Professor Petrovsky said having onshore production of an Australian-developed Covid-19 vaccine would be a boon for the country. “It means Australia would get first dibs on what’s produced but then all the rest would be exported, which could generate enormous export revenues when you look at the sales that have been generated of different vaccines.”