Blue Water Vaccines Announces Signing of Sponsored Research Agreement With The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio

Blue Water Vaccines Inc. recently announced the signing of a Sponsored Research Agreement with The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio to fund a non-human primate (NHP) study to evaluate the efficacy of BWV-401, a live attenuated, orally delivered Chlamydia vaccine.

In November 2022, BWV signed an exclusive, global license agreement with UT Health Science Center San Antonio for the development of this novel vaccine candidate, BWV-401, to prevent Chlamydia infection. BWV-401 utilizes a modified strain of Chlamydia to colonize in the gastrointestinal tract and has produced transmucosal protection against genital tract Chlamydia infection in mouse models without altering the gut microbiota. In this new effort, BWV will fund an NHP study to further evaluate the efficacy of BWV-401 and provide additional support for development towards human clinical trials.

Often regarded as the gold standard animal model for drug development and approval, NHP studies allow researchers to assess safety and efficacy of vaccines in human-like models without completing full, robust human clinical trials. In this upcoming study, NHPs will be vaccinated with BWV-401 and subsequently challenged against Chlamydia to validate the hypothesis that, along with being a safe, this vaccine, when delivered orally, is capable of eliciting an effective immune response in the genital tract and can protect against Chlamydia infection.

“We are thrilled to initiate this study with our partners at UT Health Science Center San Antonio for BWV-401,” said Joseph Hernandez, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Blue Water Vaccines. “There remains a high unmet need for an efficacious Chlamydia vaccine to prevent the millions of infections seen around the world each year. We look forward to completing this study and moving one step closer towards clinical development of this novel vaccine.”

According to the CDC, Chlamydia is the most frequently reported bacterial STI in the United States, with about 1.6 million new cases reported in 2020 alone. Globally, the WHO estimates about 129 million new cases of Chlamydia each year and may be an underrepresentation given many cases are asymptomatic and low availability of diagnostic testing in low- and middle-income countries. Currently, there is no vaccine available to prevent Chlamydia infection, and the main treatment is through antibiotic regimens with the possibility of reinfection after antibiotics have treated the disease. If undetected or left untreated, Chlamydia represents a major cause of pelvic inflammatory disease and infertility in women.

Blue Water Vaccines Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing transformational vaccines to address significant health challenges globally. Headquartered in Cincinnati, OH, the company holds the rights to proprietary technology developed at the University of Oxford, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, St. Jude Children’s Hospital, and The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. The Company is developing a universal flu vaccine that will provide protection from all virulent strains in addition to licensing a novel norovirus (NoV) S&P nanoparticle versatile virus-like particle (VLP) vaccine platform from Cincinnati Children’s to develop vaccines for multiple infectious diseases, including norovirus/rotavirus and malaria, among others. Additionally, Blue Water Vaccines is developing a Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus) vaccine candidate, designed to specifically prevent the highly infectious middle ear infections, known as Acute Otitis Media (AOM), in children, and prevention of pneumonia in older people at risk for contracting pneumococcal pneumonia, a significant unmet medical need. The advantage of this technology includes a serotype independent mucosal immunity that prevents colonization in the upper respiratory tract as well as systemic immunity that can confer serotype independent against invasive pneumococcal disease. The company is also developing a Chlamydia vaccine candidate with UT Health Science Center San Antonio to prevent infection and reduce the need for antibiotic treatment associated with contracting Chlamydia disease. For more information, visit www.bluewatervaccines.com.