New EVI-led project aims to boost malaria control with innovative vaccine technology through international partnership and GHIT Fund support.

EVI, July 2025

The SEmalvac6 project officially launched in May 2025, building on years of vaccine R&D collaborative efforts against malaria. Funded by the Global Health Innovative Technology (GHIT) Fund with an investment of approximately JPY 800 million, this initiative will run until March 2027. The project is coordinated by the European Vaccine Initiative (EVI) and brings together leading academic institutions and industry partners including Osaka University, the University of Copenhagen, AdaptVac, Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen, Ajinomoto Co., Inc., and Nobelpharma Co., Ltd.

The core aim of SEmalvac6 is to advance the biomanufacture and preclinical development of the blood-stage malaria vaccine candidate SE36/cVLP. This candidate combines a novel, high-yield production system with an innovative capsid virus-like particle (cVLP) delivery platform, aiming to enable affordable large-scale manufacturing and improve immunogenicity.

Key milestones include:

• large-scale GMP production of the SE36 antigen and the SE36/cVLP formulation,

• non-clinical toxicology studies,

• preparation for first-in-human clinical trials to assess safety and efficacy.

• The project builds on prior research successes and seeks to support early clinical development.

“Building on our long-term collaborations with the consortium partners, we look forward to further develop this new version of the blood stage malaria vaccine candidate SE36” – says Dr Sophie Houard, Director of Vaccine Development at EVI - “Promising clinical results with previous formulations paved the way for the current research activities to further optimise the presentation and manufacturing of the SE36 antigen”.

By leveraging innovative biomanufacturing technology, the project aims to reduce production costs and simplify large-scale manufacturing, making the vaccine more accessible to low- and middle-income countries where malaria remains a major cause of illness and death.

This initiative has the potential to complement existing malaria interventions, contribute to lower disease incidence, reduce child mortality, and help communities break the cycle of poverty, and ultimately support progress toward global malaria elimination targets

Read the press release from GHIT Fund: https://www.ghitfund.org/newsroom/press/detail/509

This project has received funding from Global Health Innovative Technology Fund (GHIT).

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This article is reprinted with permission from the European Vaccine Initiative (EVI), for educational and communication purposes only. Original link: https://www.euvaccine.eu/post/evi-launches-new-global-collaboration-to-advance-promising-malaria-vaccine-candidate-semalvac6  . Copyright belongs to the original author.