(Reuters) -Germany’s BioNTech said on Monday it is entering into a partnership with the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) to advance the development of its mpox vaccine.
CEPI will provide funding of up to $90 million to support the development of vaccine candidates which is based on BioNTech’s mRNA technology.
BioNTech will initiate a early-to-mid stage trial for the vaccine BNT166 for the prevention of mpox.
Mpox is a viral illness which causes skin rashes and can be transmitted to humans through physical contact.
The partnership is part of BioNTech’s strategy to develop vaccines for the prevention of high-medical-need infectious diseases, including diseases that disproportionally affect lower-income countries, the company said.
(Reporting by Sriparna Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee and Mrigank Dhaniwala)