Intervacc awarded funding from Vinnova for further development of vaccine against Staphylococcus aureus infections

Stockholm 25 March 2020 - Intervacc AB (publ) will continue the development of its new vaccine against Staphylococcus aureus infections that cause mastitis in dairy cows. The project will be co-financed by Intervacc and Vinnova within the framework of innovation projects at small and medium-sized companies - Autumn 2019. Financing covers a part of the preclinical phase of the development program with a budget of SEK 3.9 million.

Vinnova has motivated its decision, which was made in face of strong competition from other applications, with the following comments:

• The project results are considered to provide a good basis for a positive contribution to one or more of the goals for sustainable development in the UN Agenda 2030 platform. Furthermore, the company's analysis of any risks linked to the sustainability goals and actions is considered to be well thought-out.
• The project plan is detailed and describes a clearly focused and feasible project. The project budget is judged to be credible.
• The company's resources in the form of previous experience, as well as skills, networks and equipment provide a good basis for achieving the project goals.

"This is a very good validation of our operations and our vaccine technology, as well as of our vaccine candidates against mastitis in dairy cows. Vinnova has selected our innovation project in the face of strong competition from other Swedish development projects, all with the potential to achieve international success. We can now strengthen our activities in this vaccine development in our exciting project portfolio of modern vaccines" said Jan-Ingmar Flock, chief scientific officer at Intervacc.

Mastitis in dairy cows is a major problem in the dairy industry worldwide. In the EU alone, more than 2.6 million cases of mastitis, which can be linked to Staphylococcus aureus, occur per year. The global milk industry costs associated with mastitis are almost SEK 270 billion. The dairy industry is affected, among other things, by reduced milk yield, financial losses due to low milk quality, discarded milk and premature slaughter of productive dairy cattle. The need for a new effective vaccine to complement other preventive measures is very high.

The need for new effective vaccines is increasing

Recent events have created a focus on the need for new and safe vaccines. The fight against antibiotic-resistant bacteria and diseases that are spreading globally is a priority. This war is being waged in both human and animal medicine, in line with the principles of “one health”. Many infections that affect humans originate in animals and spread to humans. This also applies to bacteria that have developed antibiotic resistance. In this context, the development of new effective vaccines for prophylactic treatment plays an important role in reducing the worldwide use of antibiotics.

For more information please contact:                    

Andreas Andersson, CEO

Phone: +46 (0)8 120 10 601, Cell: +46 (0)73 335 99 70

E-mail: andreas.andersson@intervacc.com

This information is information that Intervacc AB is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out above on March 25, 2020.

About Intervacc

Intervacc AB (publ) is a company within the Biotechnology sector. The Company´s main area is to develop modern sub-unit vaccines against economically important bacterial infections, within animal health. The company´s vaccine candidates are based on several years of research at Karolinska Institutet and Swedish University of Agricultural Research where the foundation was laid for the company´s research and development work. The Intervacc share has been listed on the NASDAQ First North Growth Market since April 2017 with Eminova Fondkommission AB, adviser@eminova.se, +46 (0)8–684 211 10 as Certified Adviser.

About Vinnova

Vinnova is Sweden's innovation authority. Vinnova's mission is to promote sustainable growth in Sweden through funding of needs-motivated research and development of effective innovation systems. Vinnova is a government agency under the Ministry of Trade and Industry and national contact authority for the EU framework program for research and development.

Contact information for Certified Adviser

Eminova Fondkommission AB

E-mail: adviser@eminova.se, Phone: +46 (0)8 – 684 211 10