Vaccines are arguably the most powerful tools we have developed to improve human health. Most vaccines have been manufactured the same way for more than 70 years. This older technology presents some limitations. For example, when the World Health Organization (WHO) identifies a new strain of Influenza, it typically takes up to six months before the first dose of vaccine is ready – not nearly fast enough to address an emerging viral strain, particularly if it has the potential to become a pandemic strain.

Current licensed influenza vaccines are produced in fertilized eggs. The embryo is infected so that the virus can multiply. After a period of incubation, the virus is harvested and purified. This production system is a complex process that is inadequate in the face of a pandemic as it may generate low yields, it is not amenable to rapid scale-up, and is dependent of egg availability.

Manufacturing problems related to egg-based vaccine production have been recognized by governments worldwide and have created the need for development of alternative vaccine production systems. Manufacturing systems based on plants, bacteria, yeast and cell cultures are currently being developed. Of these systems, we believe Medicago’s plant-based technologies potentially offer the most rapid, flexible and robust solution.