BS RAWAT
NEW DELHI: Global research and development organization, Hilleman Laboratories, has announced plans to venture into the area of maternal and child health.

The Labs is undertaking research and development of an effective and affordable vaccine against Group B Streptococcus to have a positive impact for women and children living in low middle-income countries, Hilleman Laboratories has said in a statement.

Maternal colonization is the principal route of Streptococcus agalactiae or group B streptococcus (GBS) transmission. It converts from the asymptomatic mucosal carriage state to a major bacterial pathogen causing severe invasive infections.

Various studies have established that a maternal vaccine may prevent 231,000 infant and maternal GBS cases but, despite several vaccines to prevent GBS being in development, none is currently available in the market.

Dr Davinder Gill, CEO, Hilleman Laboratories, said, “The Labs has embarked on a project to develop a safe, effective and affordable vaccine against Group B Streptococcus.  In this project, we will use our expertise in the conjugate vaccine technology in which we have substantial experience. We will design, assemble and test the vaccine within our R&D centre in India.”

Since there is currently no approved vaccine for Group B Streptococcus, our initiative is an important one for women and children living in low and middle-income countries,” he added.

Dr. Manoj Kumar, Senior Director-R&D at Hilleman Labs, stated “Now, we would like to apply our knowhow in this area to produce an innovative vaccine against Group B Streptococcus and we are very excited about the opportunity”.