SK Bioscience COVID-19 Vaccine Listed on WHO Emergency Use Listing

12th COVID-19 Emergency Use Listing Registered
"Will Accelerate Development of New Vaccines"

SK Bioscience announced on the 19th that its self-developed COVID-19 vaccine, 'Skycovione,' has been listed on the World Health Organization (WHO) Emergency Use Listing (EUL).

Packaging work for the COVID-19 vaccine 'Skycovione' is being carried out at SK Bioscience L House in Andong-si, Gyeongbuk.
[Photo by SK Bioscience]

Skycovione is a COVID-19 vaccine jointly developed by SK Bioscience and the Antigen Design Research Institute at the University of Washington School of Pharmacy in the United States. To enhance immune response and induce neutralizing antibodies, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)'s adjuvant was applied. Notably, it is the world's first vaccine to utilize 'Rosetta,' the University of Washington's protein structure prediction and analysis program that rapidly and accurately decodes protein three-dimensional structures.

Skycovione was developed using a synthetic antigen method that has proven long-term safety and can be stored and distributed under refrigerated conditions of 2 to 8 degrees Celsius. SK Bioscience explains that these characteristics are expected to contribute to resolving the vaccine supply imbalance issue. In fact, during the pandemic, underdeveloped countries without ultra-low temperature facilities have not been able to receive sufficient COVID-19 vaccines from the early stages of quarantine until now.

Previously, Skycovione received formal product approval last month from the UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for primary vaccination (1st and 2nd doses) in adults aged 18 and over. Skycovione is the first vaccine developed in South Korea to receive formal product approval in the UK. It also received formal approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety in South Korea in June last year.

Ahn Jae-yong, President of SK Bioscience, said, "Based on excellent clinical data and active communication with global regulatory agencies, we were able to have our vaccine listed on the WHO EUL following approval in the UK. We will do our best to develop additional vaccines so that South Korea can proactively secure vaccine sovereignty in preparation for future infectious disease pandemics that can occur at any time."

Meanwhile, SK Bioscience is accelerating the development of a universal vaccine targeting 'Sarbecovirus,' which includes COVID-19 and its variants, under the support of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI). Additionally, it is currently conducting preclinical research on a messenger RNA (mRNA) platform using the COVID-19 virus.