EMU: Acquisition of the Procscan Scanner and establishment of the VaxArray system for the evaluation of Influenza vaccines.

• Grant number: 23/17611-4
• Support Opportunities: Research Infrastructure Program - Small Medium Sized
• Start date: September 01, 2024
• End date: August 31, 2027
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Collective Health - Public Health
• Principal Investigator: Paulo Lee Ho
• Grantee: Paulo Lee Ho
• Host Institution: Instituto Butantan. Secretaria da Saúde (São Paulo - Estado). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated researchers: Ana Maria Moro

Abstract

Butantan Institute is nowadays the main producer of Influenza vaccine in the Southern Hemisphere, with the challenge of achieving national autonomy by increasing the capacity of production of the Flu vaccine. Therefore, influenza vaccines in development such as the quadrivalent seasonal, adjuvanted formulations, high dose and pre-pandemic H5Nx vaccines are under assessement. Not only Influenza, but also other diseases such as Covid-19 (which is recently part of the Brazilian National Immunization Program coordinated by the Ministry of Health) are challenges faced by the Institution. In this sense, the combined vaccine between Influenza and ButanVac is being developed at Butantan. On this context, monitoring the stability and content of hemagglutinin and neuraminidase antigens is of great importance to guarantee the efficacy and quality of the final product. Thus, the present proposal aim to improve the methods for assessing the quality of influenza vaccines. To achieve this purpose, we propose: 1) the establishment of the VaxArray platform by acquisition and installation of the equipment; and 2) purchasing and installation of the ProcScan Scanner for quantitative measuring of the Single Radial Diffusion technique, as well as user training by the specialized technical team for each equipment. The VaxArray platform offers Influenza microarrays that provide a rapid and multiplexed measuring of the concentration of influenza proteins -hemagglutinin, neuraminidase and nucleoprotein - specifically designed for analysis of seasonal and pandemic influenza vaccines. Even, with sensitivity 100 times higher than the traditional Single Radial Diffusion test. Thus, we expect to obtain quantitative and indicative vaccine-stability measures, more precise, easily, and in less time. The proposal of acquisition of the EMUs-PMP described is associated to the FAPESP project 2020/07040-1 Center for Research and Development in Immunobiologicals (CeRDI) - an initiative of the Butantan Institute, with an area of action focus on developing Influenza vaccines to increase national coverage. (AU)