Proactive Investors - Contract research specialist hVIVO PLC said it has signed a US$5.2mln contract with a biotech company in the Asia Pacific region to test the latter's respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine candidate.
The phase IIa clinical trial will be held at the company's London facilities and will assess the drug's safety, its ability to provoke an immune response (immunogenicity), and efficacy.
The human challenge study is set to begin in the second half of this year and the revenue will be recognised in 2023 and 2024.
This is the first contract of this kind hVIVO has signed with a client in the Asia Pacific region in over a decade and is a growth area for the company as it looks to diversify its client base and order book, investors were told.
"I am optimistic that more biopharma companies in the APAC region will increasingly recognize both the value of human challenge trials and hVIVO's reputation as the 'go-to' partner in the market," said Yamin 'Mo' Khan, chief executive of hVIVO.
"The company has extensive experience in conducting challenge studies for respiratory viruses, including various strains of influenza, RSV, and human rhinovirus, as well as asthma and malaria.
"This contract strengthens hVIVO's revenue visibility into 2024 and highlights the company's strong and sustainable growth model."
In the same announcement, hVIVO said it will provide a trading update for the year that just ended on January 25.