New COVID Vaccine Developed by University of Washington Scientists

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A COVID-19 vaccine developed by UW Medicine researchers is the first COVID therapeutic technology from the Seattle health care system to be approved for patient use.

The new vaccine, trademarked as SKYCovione, is a “second-generation” protein-based immunization approved for patient use by the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, with pending authorization in the U.K. and other countries. SKYCovione is more stable than the more common mRNA COVID vaccines and could enable broader vaccination efforts in parts of the world where medical and storage resources are harder to find.

The vaccine technology will be licensed as royalty-free for the duration of the pandemic and will focus on providing shots to under-vaccinated countries.

“We’ve heard stories about wealthy counties giving doses to lower- and middle-income countries, and then … pointing fingers at receiving countries for not being able to use them [before they expire],” said David Veesler, UW Medicine biochemistry professor and co-developer. “These are anecdotes, but they’re still stories that happen…these superior storage properties might make a huge difference to reach people who still have not received vaccines.”