Sanofi And SK Bioscience Strengthen Partnership On Advanced Pneumococcal Vaccines Program

Sanofi and SK Bioscience have strengthened their partnership in pneumococcal vaccine development. This collaboration will support and expand the development, license, and commercialisation of next-generation pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) for children and adults. This move underscores their shared commitment to combating invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) globally. Despite decades of vaccination efforts, many serotypes of Streptococcus pneumoniae, the bacteria responsible for IPD, remain uncovered by current vaccines. Next-generation PCVs aim to address this gap by targeting a broader range of disease-causing serotypes.

Thomas Triomphe, Executive Vice President of Vaccines Sanofi, said in a statement, “Given the vast unmet public health needs in IPD, we’re delighted to expand this collaboration and continue our pursuit of innovative work in PCV. Our collaboration leverages SK bioscience’s capabilities and Sanofi’s expertise in developing and bringing innovative vaccines to people worldwide to reduce the global impact of pneumococcal disease.”

The enhanced collaboration builds upon their ongoing efforts to develop a PCV21 pediatric vaccine, which recently entered a phase 3 clinical trial. This vaccine is the first PCV with coverage of more than 20 serotypes to advance to this late stage of testing in infants and toddlers. The phase 3 program, which follows promising phase 2 results shared last year, will involve over 7,700 participants across various age groups and regions, including the United States, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Latin America.

Jaeyong Ahn, CEO and President of SK Bioscience, also commented, “We’re thrilled about the expansion of our collaboration with Sanofi, which serves as the core of our strategy to develop new solutions to combat pneumococcal disease. The ongoing expansion of our state-of-the-art manufacturing base, cofinanced by Sanofi, will support the launch of PCV21 and future next-generation vaccines.”

Under the expanded agreement, Sanofi and SK Bioscience will share research and development costs. As part of the deal, Sanofi will provide SK Bioscience with an upfront payment of €50 million and additional expenses tied to development and commercial milestones. The global commercialisation will be handled by Sanofi once the vaccines are approved. However, the commercialisation will exclude South Korea, where SK Bioscience will retain exclusive rights. SK Bioscience will also receive royalties from sales outside South Korea. This partnership represents a significant step forward in addressing the unmet needs of pneumococcal disease prevention through innovative vaccine solutions.