• IVI – Catholic University – Inventage Lab – Enzynomics consortium secures grant from ‘Korean ARPA-H’ research program of Korean MOHW and KHIDI
• $13 million USD grant through 2029 to support the establishment of an ultra-fast production system for mRNA vaccines for 1 million people within 100 days

November 4, 2024, SEOUL, Republic of Korea  – A consortium of the International Vaccine Institute (IVI), the Catholic University of Korea, Inventage Lab, and Enzynomics has secured a grant for the ‘Development of a Decentralized Vaccine Production System’ through a competitive bid under the ‘New ARPA-H Project for Korea’ offered by the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) and the Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI). This initiative propels collaborative research towards building a system capable of producing mRNA vaccines within 100 days for an initial pandemic response.

Korea’s Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) project, granted by MOHW and KHIDI, aims to address healthcare challenges and drive innovative changes in medical and health services, and is modeled after the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), an advanced research program in the U.S.

The selected project will be led by IVI and carried out jointly by consortium members, including Prof. Sung-Wook Choi of the Department of Biomedical-Chemical Engineering at Catholic University, Inventage Lab, and Enzynomics. It will be funded with 17.6 billion won ($13 million) over a period of four years and six months through early 2029.

The consortium aims to establish a system capable of producing 1 million doses of mRNA vaccine within 100 days, enough to immunize 1 million people in the event of an epidemic like COVID-19. To achieve this, the consortium plans to modularize the entire manufacturing process of mRNA vaccines, encompassing mRNA design and optimization, synthesis, LNP formulation, and mass production. The vaccines will then be produced in container-based systems designed for vaccine production.

In the project, IVI, as an international organization dedicated to vaccine development and delivery, will be responsible for evaluating the immunogenicity of mRNA vaccines produced with individual component technologies and creating containers to house mRNA synthesis and production modules. Prof. Sung-Wook Choi’s team will focus on developing the mRNA synthesis process and vaccine delivery technology. Inventage Lab, a drug delivery system platform company, will develop a mass production process and equipment for high-quality LNP vaccines, while Enzynomics, a biotech company specializing in enzyme production, will supply mRNA raw materials through its proprietary mRNA production capabilities.

Dr. Manki Song, Deputy Director General of Science at IVI, said, “Research and development collaboration is essential for the rapid development and production of advanced vaccines, including mRNA vaccines. We will actively work with partner organizations and companies to secure the capability to produce mRNA vaccines early in the event of a new infectious disease outbreak.”

Prof. Sung-Wook Choi of the Catholic University of Korea said, “By developing a process that can continuously synthesize mRNA, beyond the existing synthesis process, we can maximize the efficiency of stable mRNA production “This ARPA-H consortium project is expected to enable us to secure foundational technology for a rapid initial response in the event of future infectious disease outbreaks like COVID-19.”

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About the International Vaccine Institute (IVI)
The International Vaccine Institute (IVI) is a non-profit international organization established in 1997 at the initiative of the United Nations Development Programme with a mission to discover, develop, and deliver safe, effective, and affordable vaccines for global health.

IVI’s current portfolio includes vaccines at all stages of pre-clinical and clinical development for infectious diseases that disproportionately affect low- and middle-income countries, such as cholera, typhoid, chikungunya, shigella, salmonella, schistosomiasis, hepatitis E, HPV, COVID-19, and more. IVI developed the world’s first low-cost oral cholera vaccine, pre-qualified by the World Health Organization (WHO), and developed a new-generation typhoid conjugate vaccine that also achieved WHO prequalification in early 2024.

IVI is headquartered in Seoul, Republic of Korea with a Europe Regional Office in Sweden, an Africa Regional Office in Rwanda, a Country Office in Austria, and a Country and Project Office in Kenya. IVI additionally co-founded the Hong Kong Jockey Club Global Health Institute in Hong Kong and hosts Collaborating Centers in Ghana, Ethiopia, and Madagascar. 42 countries and the WHO are members of IVI, and the governments of the Republic of Korea, Sweden, India, Finland, Austria, and Thailand provide state funding. For more information, please visit https://www.ivi.int.