On Feb. 18, 2020, Sanofi announced it had leveraged previous development work for a SARS vaccine which may unlock a fast path forward for developing a COVID-19 vaccine. Sanofi collaborated with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services.

COVID-19 belongs to a family of coronaviruses that can cause respiratory disease. In late 2002, the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) coronavirus emerged and then largely disappeared by 2004. Sanofi planned to further investigate an advanced pre-clinical SARS vaccine candidate that could protect against COVID-19.

Sanofi used its recombinant DNA platform to produce a 2019 novel coronavirus vaccine candidate. The recombinant technology produces an exact genetic match to proteins found on the surface of the virus. The DNA sequence encoding this antigen will be combined into the DNA of the baculovirus expression platform, the basis of Sanofi’s licensed recombinant influenza product, and used to rapidly produce large quantities of the coronavirus antigen which will be formulated to stimulate the immune system to protect against the virus.