GreenLight Biosciences (ENVI) partners with IAVI to accelerate COVID-19 vaccine trial in Africa

NEW YORK, Nov. 30, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- GreenLight Biosciences has partnered with the non-profit scientific research organization IAVI to work together on a Phase I clinical trial in Africa. IAVI and its partners were among the first to conduct HIV vaccine clinical trials in Africa, and since then, IAVI has sponsored more than 60 vaccine and biologics clinical trials in 13 countries. IAVI has built partnerships with centers of excellence for clinical research in five sub-Saharan African countries, and is developing vaccines and biologics against HIV, COVID-19, tuberculosis, Lassa fever, snakebite, and other diseases.

This partnership will help advance GreenLight's mRNA COVID-19 vaccine candidate. More vaccines to prevent COVID-19, especially those suitable for use in low-income countries, will be an ongoing global health need.

GreenLight will provide its vaccine candidate for the trial and will make preparations for large-scale manufacturing of the vaccine.

IAVI's experience in running clinical studies, planned for late Q1 2022, will ensure that the trial meets regulatory standards. IAVI will also be responsible for overall clinical trial management.

"Only about 6% of people in low-income countries have been vaccinated against COVID-19. This situation leaves hundreds of millions of people vulnerable to severe disease and could lead to the continued emergence of more dangerous viral variants. It is crucial for vaccine development to focus on overcoming inequities in access to SARS-CoV-2 vaccines and address the still unmet needs of low- and middle-income countries, which have mainly had to rely on imported vaccines developed elsewhere when they are available at all," said IAVI President and CEO Mark Feinberg.

This partnership aims to accelerate the timeline for manufacturing and deployment of GreenLight's COVID-19 vaccine candidate to Africa and potentially for export from Africa.

"There is an urgent need to develop vaccines in Africa, for Africa," said GreenLight CEO Andrey Zarur. "Our vaccine trial, in partnership with IAVI, will open the way to make vaccines that are available to everybody, not just citizens of rich countries.If we don't vaccinate the world quickly, then the ongoing emergence of new variants could compromise the tremendous progress made so far in the COVID-19 response."

The trial is expected to start once research sites and clinical research partners in Africa have been finalized, and after ethical and regulatory approvals. This clinical trial will harness capabilities and expertise in Africa, and builds on long-standing efforts to nurture this capacity by a variety of collaborative research organizations and global health funders. By engaging African clinical investigators and communities affected by COVID-19 early in clinical development, GreenLight and IAVI aim to ensure that the vaccine candidate will be suitable and effective for African populations. Moreover, enlisting African research partners in vaccine development will further strengthen capacity on the continent to address emerging infectious disease threats beyond COVID-19.

This partnership builds on IAVI's mission to translate scientific discoveries into affordable, globally accessible public health solutions. It also delivers part of GreenLight's ambition to help vaccinate the world against COVID-19, detailed in its Blueprint To Vaccinate The World published in March 2021. Both organizations are committed to vaccine equity and envision a world capable of producing enough mRNA vaccine doses for billions of people a year. This vision aligns with calls by the African Union, Africa CDC, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, and others for concrete actions to increase vaccine manufacturing capacity in Africa, not just for COVID-19, but for other infectious diseases.

About IAVI

IAVI is a nonprofit scientific research organization with headquarters in the U.S. and locations in Europe, Africa, and India that develops vaccines and antibodies for HIV, tuberculosis, emerging infectious diseases (including COVID-19), and neglected diseases, with the goal of global access. Read more at iavi.org.

About GreenLight

Founded in 2008, GreenLight aims to solve some of the world's biggest problems by delivering on the full potential of RNA for human health and agriculture.

In human health, this includes mRNA vaccines and therapeutics. In agriculture, this includes RNA  to protect honeybees and a range of crops. The company's breakthrough cell-free RNA manufacturing platform, which is protected by numerous patents, allows for cost-effective and scalable production of RNA. For more information, visit https://www.greenlightbiosciences.com/

In August 2021, GreenLight Biosciences announced plans to become publicly listed through a business combination with Environmental Impact Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ:ENVI).

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, with respect to the proposed transaction between GreenLight Biosciences, Inc. ("GreenLight") and Environmental Impact Acquisition Corp. ("ENVI"). These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words "believe," "project," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "intend," "strategy," "future," "opportunity," "plan," "may," "should," "will," "would," "will be," "will continue," "will likely result" and similar expressions. Many factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this press release, including but not limited to the risk that the transaction may not be completed in a timely manner or at all, which may adversely affect the price of ENVI's securities and the effect of the announcement or pendency of the transaction on GreenLight's business relationships, operating results, and business generally. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and ENVI and GreenLight assume no obligation and do not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

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SOURCE GreenLight Biosciences, Inc.