Blue Water Vaccines Announces Plans to Evaluate Efficacy of Streptococcus pneumoniae Vaccine Candidate Against Pneumococcal Pneumonia at the World Vaccine Congress in Barcelona
October 11 2022 - 9:15AM
Blue Water Vaccines Inc. (“BWV” or “Blue Water Vaccines” or the
“Company”), a biopharmaceutical company developing transformational
vaccines to address significant global health challenges, today
announced plans to investigate the ability of BWV-201, a
Streptococcus pneumoniae vaccine candidate for acute otitis media
(“AOM”) prevention, to also protect against non-invasive
pneumococcal pneumonia at the World Vaccine Congress in Barcelona.
While Streptococcus pneumoniae is commonly found in the nose and
throat of healthy individuals, overgrowth and spread of the
bacteria can result in pneumococcal disease. Non-invasive forms of
pneumococcal disease include AOM, sinusitis, and pneumococcal
pneumonia, while invasive forms include bacteremia, sepsis, and
pneumococcal meningitis. BWV’s new development plan aims to assess
the efficacy of BWV-201 in protecting individuals against
non-invasive pneumococcal pneumonia.
BWV-201 is a live attenuated bacterial vaccine candidate
developed for the prevention of AOM in children caused by
Streptococcus pneumoniae. New data, based on experiments at St.
Jude Children’s Research Hospital, suggests that BWV-201 may also
provide protection against pneumococcal pneumonia by limiting the
ability of Streptococcus pneumoniae to infect the lungs.
While conjugate and polysaccharide vaccines are available to
protect against pneumococcal disease, protection is mainly limited
to invasive disease. Efficacy rates of these vaccines against
pneumococcal pneumonia are historically only between 0% and 50%, as
these vaccines are administered intramuscularly and elicit a strong
systemic response, but poor protection at the mucosal surface where
pneumonia infection begins. Additionally, these vaccines only
provide protection against serotypes included in the vaccine,
ranging from 13 to 23 serotypes. By administering the modified live
bacteria intranasally, BWV-201 is designed to elicit a strong
mucosal immune response, regardless of capsular polysaccharide
serotype.
“While current pneumococcal vaccines have demonstrated excellent
efficacy against invasive pneumococcal disease historically,
pneumococcal pneumonia remains a significant unmet medical need,”
said Joseph Hernandez, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Blue
Water Vaccines. “With this new data, we believe our vaccine can
provide protection across all Streptococcus pneumoniae strains and
eliminate the need for antibiotic treatment associated with
pneumococcal pneumonia. We are excited to further develop BWV-201
for this new indication and look forward to addressing this
need.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
non-invasive pneumococcal pneumonia causes an estimated 150,000
hospitalizations each year in the United States alone. Despite
vaccination efforts with traditional pneumococcal vaccines, the
American Lung Association reports that adults over 65 years old are
at 6.1 times greater risk for pneumonia infection and over 10 times
more likely to be hospitalized with pneumococcal pneumonia versus
healthy adults.
About Blue Water Vaccines
Blue Water Vaccines Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused
on developing transformational vaccines to address significant
health challenges globally. Headquartered in Cincinnati, OH, the
company holds the rights to proprietary technology developed at the
University of Oxford, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical
Center, and St. Jude Children's Hospital. The company is developing
a universal flu vaccine that will provide protection from all
virulent strains in addition to licensing a novel norovirus (NoV)
S&P nanoparticle versatile virus-like particle (VLP) vaccine
platform from Cincinnati Children’s to develop vaccines for
multiple infectious diseases, including norovirus/rotavirus and
malaria, among others. Additionally, Blue Water Vaccines is
developing a Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus) vaccine
candidate, designed to specifically prevent the highly infectious
middle ear infections, known as Acute Otitis Media (AOM), in
children. For more information, visit
www.bluewatervaccines.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking
within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995. These statements may be identified by the use of
forward-looking words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “forecast,”
“estimate,” “expect,” and “intend,” among others. These
forward-looking statements are based on BWV’s current expectations
and actual results could differ materially. There are a number of
factors that could cause actual events to differ materially from
those indicated by such forward-looking statements. These factors
include, but are not limited to, risks related to the development
of BWV’s vaccine candidates; the failure to obtain FDA clearances
or approvals and noncompliance with FDA regulations; delays and
uncertainties caused by the global COVID-19 pandemic; risks related
to the timing and progress of clinical development of our product
candidates; our need for additional financing; uncertainties of
patent protection and litigation; uncertainties of government or
third party payor reimbursement; limited research and development
efforts and dependence upon third parties; and substantial
competition. As with any vaccine under development, there are
significant risks in the development, regulatory approval and
commercialization of new products. BWV does not undertake an
obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement.
Investors should read the risk factors set forth in BWV’s Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021,
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on
March 31, 2022, Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended
June 30, 2022, filed with the SEC on August 15, 2022 and periodic
reports filed with the SEC on or after the date thereof. All of
BWV’s forward-looking statements are expressly qualified by all
such risk factors and other cautionary statements. The information
set forth herein speaks only as of the date thereof.
Media Contact Information:Blue Water Media RelationsTelephone:
(646) 942-5591Email: Nic.Johnson@russopartnersllc.com
Investor Contact Information:Blue Water Investor RelationsEmail:
investors@bluewatervaccines.com
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