Development of an inactivated vaccine candidate, BBIBP-CorV, with potent protection against SARS-CoV-2

Wang, Hui; Zhang, Yuntao; Huang, Baoying; Deng, Wei; Quan, Yaru; Wang, Wenling; Xu, Wenbo; Zhao, Yuxiu; Li, Na; Zhang, Jin; Liang, Hongyang; Bao, Linlin; Xu, Yanfeng; Ding, Ling; Zhou, Weimin; Gao, Hong; Liu, Jiangning; Niu, Peihua; Zhao, Li; Zhen, Wei; Fu, Hui; Yu, Shouzhi; Zhang, Zhengli; Xu, Guangxue; Li, Changgui; Lou, Zhiyong; Xu, Miao; Qin, Chuan; Wu, Guizhen; Gao, George Fu; Tan, Wenjie; Yang, Xiaoming

Summary The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) threatens global public health. The development of a vaccine is urgently needed for the prevention and control of COVID-19. Here, we report the pilot-scale production of an inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate (BBIBP-CorV) that induces high levels of neutralizing antibodies titers in mice, rats, guinea pigs, rabbits and nonhuman primates (cynomolgus monkeys and rhesus macaques) to provide protection against SARS-CoV-2. Two-dose immunizations using 2 μg/dose of BBIBP-CorV provided highly efficient protection against SARS-CoV-2 intratracheal challenge in rhesus macaques, without detectable antibody-dependent enhancement of infection. In addition, BBIBP-CorV exhibits efficient productivity and good genetic stability for vaccine manufacture. These results support the further evaluation of BBIBP-CorV in a clinical trial.