hVIVO says Omicron contract validates move to Canary Wharf facility

(Alliance News) - hVIVO PLC on Monday welcomed a GBP2.5 million contract to start an Omicron characterisation study at its new facility at Canary Wharf in London.

Shares in the London-based contract research organisation, which tests vaccines for infectious and respiratory diseases, were up 0.8% to 27.00 pence each in London on Monday.

The company said the contract, with a mid-sized pharmaceutical company, aims to identify a dose of hVIVO's Omicron BA.5 challenge agent that establishes a safe, measurable and reproducible disease in healthy volunteers with sufficiently high infection rates to then be able to use the model to test the efficacy of antivirals and vaccines in the future.

hVIVO said the study is expected to commence in the fourth quarter of 2024, with the majority of revenue recognised in 2025. It will take place at the company's new CL3 quarantine facility at Canary Wharf in east London.

The facility has been specifically designed to meet the hospital isolation suite standards suitable for CL3 pathogens and is equipped with advanced safety features, the company said.

Dependent on the successful completion of the characterisation study and receipt of relevant regulatory approvals, hVIVO expects to conduct multiple Omicron human challenge trials to test the efficacy of medical products from mid-2025.

Chief Executive Yamin Khan said: "Securing this contract further validates the move to our new facilities and the new opportunities it brings for CL3 category projects."

By Jeremy Cutler, Alliance News reporter

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