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GSK statement: Pandemic flu plans
GSK is a supplier of antivirals and vaccines and can help governments and international organizations meet their pandemic planning needs. An effective response to pandemic will involve co-operation between many parties. GSK is committed to being part of the collective effort needed to develop an effective global response to flu pandemic.
Recently GSK has invested $2 billion to expand the company’s flu vaccine manufacturing capacity and to increase the production of its antiviral Relenza® (zanamivir for inhalation). Both could help meet public health needs in the case of pandemic.
GSK is also rapidly and significantly expanding its capabilities to manufacture flu vaccine. The company expects to substantially increase its North American manufacturing capacity with the proposed acquisition of ID Biomedical, a Canadian vaccine manufacturer. The company has also expanded its manufacturing plant in Dresden, Germany, more than doubling capacity in the coming years from the current 35 million doses annually. GSK is also preparing a plan to convert more of the company’s manufacturing capabilities to pandemic flu vaccine production if needed.
As a major vaccine research company, GSK also has an H5N1 prototype pandemic vaccine in development. The prototype uses an adjuvant which may boost the body’s immune response to the vaccine and allow for lower doses to be used which would be essential for treating large populations in a pandemic. The prototype may also protect against additional strains (drifted from H5N1) that could arise. Clinical trials with the H5N1 flu strain are planned in 2006.
GSK is also investing in development of new vaccine production technologies. The company recently acquired a vaccine plant in Marietta, PA, that will become a primary development and production center for tissue culture technology used to create the next generation of flu vaccines. Tissue culture technology could eliminate dependence on chicken eggs, thereby increasing the efficiency and speed of manufacturing, which would be critical in a pandemic. Tissue culture is therefore one of the most promising future technologies for the production of flu vaccines.
Relenza is one of several antiviral drugs that could be considered for the treatment of influenza. Currently, pandemic concerns have increased demand for available supplies of Relenza; therefore, GSK is investing to expand its manufacturing capacities to help meet the pandemic planning needs of governments and international organizations.
GlaxoSmithKline – one of the world’s leading research-based pharmaceutical and healthcare companies – is committed to improving the quality of human life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer.
