Israel will build its first factory producing a vaccine for COVID-19 in the ‘very near future,’ which will be a collaboration between the Israel Institute of Biological Research (IIBR), a local town (Yeroham) council where the facility is slated to come up and a big international pharmaceutical company. One of the pharma companies in contention to be project partner is Indian, a report in Jerusalem Post said.
All three stakeholders who will be involved in the factory’s development will be involved in a different aspect. While the Yeroham Council will provide infrastructure and manpower, the IIBR will oversee the research component of the agreement. The pharmaceutical company will handle international operations, including marketing and distribution, as per the JPost report.
The upcoming factory could come up even before the IIBR completes development and approval for its coronavirus vaccine, which it says will take place in early-2021, as per the report.
The JPost reported that the IIBR was already through with the development phase of COVID-19 antibody vaccine. The IIBR is currently in the process of patenting its vaccine and secure a commercial contract for its development.
Defense Minister Naftali Bennett visited the Ness Ziona-based lab on Monday and was briefed by the research team, who he said revealed a breakthrough antibody that attacks the virus and neutralizes it in the body, a statement by the country’s defence ministry said.
The defence ministry is closely involved and monitoring the vaccine’s development and commercialization, as per the news report.
Notably, the IIBR had last month begun conducting trials of a COVID-19 vaccine prototype on rodents, after being asked by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to be part of the country’s battle against coronavirus.
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