From the Big Lots discount vaccine section:


[link to www.meningvax.org]

•Suppliers of group A polysaccharide and tetanus toxoid, the two main components of the conjugate vaccine (Synco Bio Partners in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and Serum Institute of India Ltd [SIIL] in Pune, India).

•A research laboratory that was willing to develop and transfer a conjugation technology (Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration [CBER/FDA] in Bethesda, Maryland).

•A vaccine manufacturer who could accept the technology transfer and was willing to make a conjugate vaccine that would cost less than US$0.50 per dose (SIIL).

The conjugation technology was transferred to SIIL in December 2003, and in 2004 SIIL prepared test lots and clinical batches of the study vaccine using the CBER/FDA technology*. Animal testing, including toxicity, local tolerance, and immunogenicity of the study vaccine was completed in 2004, and the first MVP clinical trial was launched in 2005.

… for the right target

The consortium offers an alternative model for vaccine development where a key raw material comes from one source, the technology from another, and the final scale-up for production from yet another. Moreover, it includes a north-to-south transfer of technology and capacity.


What is a congugate vaccine?
A conjugate vaccine is created by covalently attaching a poor (polysaccharide organism) antigen to a carrier protein (preferably from the same microorganism), thereby conferring the immunological attributes of the carrier on the attached antigen
[link to en.wikipedia.org]

This lays out their vaccine goals in a scary but readable manner. Sounds lovely till you start reading it.

* [link to www.fda.gov]

Goal 1: Increase the nation's preparedness to address threats as a result of terrorism,
pandemic influenza and emerging infectious diseases
Goal 2: Improve global public health through international collaboration including
research and information sharing
Goal 3: Enhance the ability of advances in science and technology to facilitate
development of safe and effective biological products
Goal 4: Ensure the safety of biological products
Goal 5: Advance regulatory science and research
Goal 6: Manage for organizational excellence and accountability