MIAMI (AP) – Argentina and Brazil were selected to house the first centers for the manufacture of coronavirus vaccines with messenger RNA technology in Latin America and the Caribbean, as part of an initiative that seeks to reduce dependence on foreign supplies and pave the way. on the way to more equitable immunization across the region, officials from the Pan American Health Organization said Tuesday.
In the case of Brazil, the Institute of Technology in Immunobiologicals of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Bio-Manguinhos / FIOCRUZ), of the Ministry of Health of Brazil, and the private biopharmaceutical company Sinergium Biotech was chosen by Argentina, reported the deputy director of the OPS, Jarbas Barbosa.
He explained that Sinergium, in turn, will partner with the biotech company mAbxience to develop and manufacture the active ingredients for the vaccine.
The selection was made by a group of independent experts that evaluated more than 30 proposals from countries and companies interested in participating in a technology transfer platform for messenger RNA vaccines against the coronavirus so that the countries of the region can partner and manufacture together doses destined for the entire region.
The platform, a joint initiative of the World Health Organization and PAHO, was launched in August at an event with more than 200 participants.
Messenger RNA technology, also known as mRNA in English, is used in the manufacture of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. It is a new type of vaccine with a revolutionary technology, since it does not contain any virus and cannot cause an accidental infection. Instead, it uses part of the genetic code to teach the immune system to recognize the proteins present on the surface of the virus and prepares it to attack it in the event of contagion.
