Janssen and Bavarian Nordic to develop new HIV and hepatitis B vaccines

Janssen has announced a new partnership with Bavarian Nordic that will develop potential new vaccine regimens against hepatitis B virus (HBV) and HIV-1.

The worldwide licence and collaboration agreement will leverage Bavarian Nordic's MVA-BN technology and Janssen's own AdVac and DNA-based vaccine technologies as the basis for new treatments.

Under the terms of the deal, Janssen will conduct all clinical development and would be responsible for registration, distribution and commercialisation of any potential new vaccine regimens worldwide, with Bavarian Nordic receiving an upfront payment and future milestone-based fees.

This new partnership follows on from successful and ongoing collaborations between the companies to develop vaccines addressing Ebola and the human papillomavirus.

Dr Johan Van Hoof, global research head for infectious diseases and vaccines at Janssen, said: "With more than 250 million people believed to be living with HBV and a further 37 million with HIV, it is critical that we address these significant unmet needs."

Janssen's parent company Johnson and Johnson has also agreed to make an equity investment in Bavarian Nordic, building on previous investment supporting the development of an Ebola vaccine in 2014.

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