New CureVac vaccines will target flu and malaria. Credit: NIAID/NIH/Flickr.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has awarded two new grants to CureVac, a German biopharmaceutical firm, to support the development of mRNA-based vaccines for the prevention of influenza and malaria infections.

Set to utilise CureVac’s RNActive prophylactic vaccine technology, the new programmes will aim for a universal flu vaccine that will shield from all influenza A strains over the long-term.

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This vaccine is expected to replace the seasonal vaccine, removing the need for a new flu vaccine every year.

In addition, a new mRNA vaccine will be developed to provide protection from Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasite, which is believed to pose the greatest threat.

CureVac co-founder and CEO Ingmar Hoerr said: “Successfully exploring the potential of the mRNA platform for development of a universal flu vaccine would be a consequential achievement, benefitting much of the world’s population.

“Our mRNA platform enables the cost-effective and fast manufacturing of vaccines to prevent these and other serious diseases, potentially making a difference in the lives of millions of people around the world.”

“Our mRNA platform enables the cost-effective and fast manufacturing of vaccines to prevent these and other serious diseases, potentially making a difference in the lives of millions of people around the world.”

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The new funding is part of an agreement signed between the firms in 2015, during which the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation provided a $52m equity investment to advance the development of CureVac’s mRNA technology platform and support the construction of an industrial-scale production facility.

It is intended to aid development of new prophylactic vaccines for infectious diseases that disproportionately affect people in economically backward countries.

The terms of the ongoing partnership will see the availability of all Gates Foundation-funded products at an affordable price in such countries by CureVac, which can market them in developed countries on its own and/or through licensees.