CanSino Biologics

Established in Tianjin, China in 2009, CanSino Biologics (CanSinoBIO) has 450 employees. They currently have 15+ vaccines in their pipeline. Some in pre-clinical, some in NDA (new drug application). These include; meningitis, pneumonia, tuberculosis, Ebola virus disease, pertussis, diphtheria, tetanus, shingles etc. Since March of 2019, CanSino Biologics has been listed on the Hong Kong Exchange (HKEx). The annual bulk production capacity of the facilities as of 2020 can reach approximately 70 million to 80 million doses.

CanSino Biologics, announced in March 2020 that it was close to testing its novel coronavirus vaccine in a clinical trial in China. CanSino’s approach involves taking part of coronavirus’ genetic code and entwining it with a virus, thereby exposing healthy volunteers to the novel infection and spurring the production of antibodies. CanSino also markets a vaccine for Ebola virus in China.

In April 2020, CanSino Biologics advanced its vaccine candidate candidate, Ad5-nCoV, into Phase II trials (Chinese registration number: ChiCTR2000030906). CanSino Biologics (CanSinoBIO) is collaborating with the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) to advance bioprocessing and clinical development of vaccine candidate against COVID-19, Ad5-nCoV. Ad5-nCoV was co-developed by the Beijing Institute of Biotechnology (BIB) and CanSinoBIO. A genetically engineering replication-defective adenovirus type 5 vector was used to express the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein which is produced in HEK293 cell lines designed and developed at the NRC. As of May 12, 2020, the vaccine is subject to approval by Health Canada for a Clinical Trial Application being filed by CanSinoBIO. As a preparatory step the Government of Canada announced $44 million in funding to support upgrades to NRC facilities in Montreal to ensure readiness for Canadian bioprocessing of potential vaccine candidates.