Creating an influenza vaccine production platform
While every winter brings respiratory infections and potentially a new influenza strain that will trigger an epidemic, Quebec currently lacks the tools to respond rapidly to these emerging threats.
Backed by $2.1M from Médicament Québec, Biodextris and Inspirevax, teams from RampUp and the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) have been working since 2025 to develop a faster, more flexible influenza vaccine design and manufacturing platform.
The goal is to produce vaccines ready for preclinical trials in 100 days. RampUp is developing an egg-free platform to shorten timelines and avoid H5N1 epidemic risks, using lyophilization to eliminate the need for refrigeration and facilitate transport, and opting for intranasal administration to avoid injections and simplify distribution.
This project is headed by Professor Gregory De Crescenzo of Polytechnique Montréal.