New Article Link here but uou have to create account so I pasted it. https://www.lifescienceleader.com/doc/canadian-covid-vax-comes-forward-0001 LIFE SCIENCE LEADER Magazine Article| March 1, 2021 Canadian COVID Vax Comes Forward Source: Life Science Leader ByWayne Koberstein, Executive Editor, Life Science Leader magazine Follow Me On Twitter@WayneKoberstein Should the concept of a COVID vaccine coming from Canada surprise you? Not if you know a little history. Once upon a time, there was a little Canadian company that played a big role in supplying vaccines to the United States. Connaught, with its location in the Pennsylvania Poconos, developed and produced much of the vaccine inventory for the U.S. before and after its acquisition by the French company Pasteur Mrieux, later acquired by Aventis and then integrated into Sanofi. Yes, long before the Warp Speed race, vaccines were a global business more characterized by collaboration than competition. In concert with its national regulator, Health Canada, IMV, Inc. could make world history with its approach to COVID vaccination. IMV has been mainly focused as a cancer-drug company for years, working to develop a new class of immunotherapy, based on its proprietary delivery platform technology, DPX. And so, it remains. But the same platform the company applies to cancer immunotherapy has also turned out to be potentially ideal for vaccines. The DPX technology is formulated with active agents that the platform does not release at the injection site. This unique mechanism of action stimulates the immune system and generates a targeted immune response over a long time. DPX formulations require no extreme refrigeration and can be stored on a shelf for months. Technology assets aside, you may ask how a small company dedicated to cancer therapy could switch gears to address what seems to be an entirely different area such as COVID vaccination. IMVs CEO, Fred Ors, says the answers to that question apply to multiple facets of the companys mission, operations, and business model. A VERSATILE PLATFORM Ors came to IMV six years ago from another Canadian vaccine company, Medicago. Since then, IMV has grown from 50 to 80 employees, achieved a Nasdaq listing, and begun Phase 2 clinical trials with its lead cancer compound, DPX-Survivac. Meanwhile, the company also entered into a cooperative program with the Canadian Center for Vaccinology to develop a vaccine for the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). We have a platform that can virtually generate any type of targeted treatments using the patients own immune system. Our strategy is to partner with companies and institutions to develop other immunotherapies in different indications, says Ors. With RSV, however, although the vaccine showed promise (i.e., it generated high titers of the specific antibodies even in older adults and over one year after the vaccination), IMV decided to hold the project at that point to preserve its focus on cancer. The RSV project was a very strong demonstration of our platform in infectious diseases, Ors says. Then, years later, along comes COVID. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, we knew that IMV had to contribute to the global effort and develop a vaccine against the novel coronavirus. It was not an easy decision for us, but we knew the world needed more than one vaccine to eradicate the pandemic. Were not interested, and will never be interested, in making a me-too vaccine; thats not what the company does. We saw the opportunity to develop a vaccine that would be different from anything else. Also, we saw that there would be an eventual need for a vaccine that would provide the longest duration possible, especially with the most vulnerable. It made sense for the company to start developing a vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, not really in the race for the first, but more in the race to develop the best possible solution. Once IMV made the decision to develop the COVID vaccine, it needed to mobilize the company and make the best use of available resources. It looked outside to augment what it already had and make up for what it didnt have: chiefly, funding. We have money for oncology, but we dont have money for COVID, so the Canadian government gave us grants to support the program, and we found ways to use external resources, so there was no impact on the oncology program, Ors explains. Weve been relying on a lot of external partners, consultants, CROs, and CMOs to help us. Ors says the company is working on the premise that its DPX technology has the potential to give the world a better way to vaccinate people. Thus, it has promise for other indications beyond COVID-19, and it may help overcome the need for a rapid revaccination against COVID and other diseases by offering a long-term alternative. Once IMV produces a clinical demonstration of its COVID vaccine, it will find a partner to do all further development, he says. We are not a vaccine company; we are an immuno-oncology company. There is no doubt the vaccine program has already benefitted the company and its core oncology focus, however. Reflecting a boost the pandemic has given to the infectious-disease space in general, IMVs market cap and investor interest have risen significantly since it launched its COVID vax programs. Investors can see the fundamental value of the platform, whether its for cancer or for COVID-19, which has been very beneficial to the company and the interests of our investors. HOME BASE ADVANTAGE IMV has also undoubtedly benefitted from its location in Nova Scotia, Canada. Its relationship to Health Canada is not unique, according to Ors, only because the Canadian agency is built to collaborate closely with any company in similar circumstances. In 2020, Health Canada aimed its efforts at all companies that were fighting the pandemic through innovation, Ors says. With COVID-19, there is new science every week, and we maintain a close relationship with Health Canada, Ors adds. Their guidelines evolve as we go, so we need that level of continuous interaction to adjust to whatever is happening, whether its a new vaccine being approved, or even now, the variants that are emerging in some countries. Canada counts fewer players than in the United States, so Health Canada has a special relationship with the few domestic vaccine pharmaceutical companies we have here. Another factor that possibly distinguishes Health Canada: It is not subject to same kind of political pressure as seen recently in the United States. Ors confirms the lack of politics in determining the timelines, policies, and assessments at the Canadian body, in contrast to the direct intervention by the former president leading up to the U.S. election. It is interesting that most Americans would likely be unsurprised by the difference. "We have money for oncology, but we don't have money for COVID, so the Canadian government gave us grants to support the program, and we found ways to use external resources, so there was no impact on the oncology program." Fred Ors, CEO IMV, Inc. The company has felt the internal stress of adjustment to pursuing a vaccine program on top of its core cancer portfolio. In January 2020, we had a full-year plan for clinical development, and then in March, we had to review the plan, which was very challenging for the team. We also dealt with the effects of the COVID-19 situation itself on our employees. People had to work from home, and at the same time, we had to start this new program. Even though we did not see ourselves as in a race, there was a need for speed, so how could we develop a vaccine in such a short period of time? There is the science of the vaccine, but then comes the manufacturing, which is always very important for any vaccine development, so everything had to be done in parallel. COVID has disrupted almost every facet of business and clinical development in the bio industry, as in others. But IMV may show how, with good parallel processing, the science and business of bio can extract advantage from adversity.