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Novel Vaccine Adjuvant R&D Platform: A "Force Multiplier" for Vaccine Efficacy

Adjuvants are substances added to vaccines to enhance their immunogenicity and thereby improve efficacy. They are also known as immunomodulators or immune enhancers. As key components of vaccines, adjuvants exert their effects through multiple mechanisms: they enable the slow release of antigens, prolong the residence time of antigens in the body, increase the effective surface area of antigens, stimulate local innate immune responses, and enhance the uptake and antigen presentation by Antigen-Presenting Cells (APCs).

Comparison of Different Adjuvants and Suitable Animals

Adjuvants	Specific types	Features and Advantages	Examples of Applicable Animals and Vaccines	Precautions
Water-based / Aqueous Adjuvant	Aluminum hydroxide, aluminum phosphate, polymeric gel adjuvants	High safety profile, induces robust humoral immunity (antibody response), simple preparation, low cost	Poultry, swine, and pet vaccines; certain human vaccines	Primarily stimulates Th2 responses with weak enhancement of cellular immunity; may induce localized granulomas.
Water-in-Oil Emulsion Adjuvant	Freund's Incomplete Adjuvant、Mineral Oil Adjuvant	Delivers potent and long-lasting immune effects, effectively stimulating humoral and cellular immunity.	Inactivated vaccines for economic animals such as pigs, cattle, sheep, and poultry	Local reactions (such as abscesses) may be severe and are not suitable for vaccination of meat animals prior to slaughter.
W/O/W O/W/O	Biphasic Adjuvant	Balancing safety and efficacy, with uniform antigen distribution and a balanced immune response.	Widely used in vaccines for pets, fur animals, and various livestock species.	The production process demands high standards, with emulsion stability being the key factor.
Molecular Adjuvants	CpG ODN, Polyl:C, cytokines, etc.	Precisely modulate immune response types with minimal side effects, and can be combined with other adjuvants to achieve synergistic effects.	Inactivated vaccines for pets, poultry, cattle, sheep, and pigs	Strictly control usage to avoid immune stress caused by overdose.
Liposomal Adjuvants	Liposome spheres	It can efficiently deliver antigens to antigen-presenting cells, enhancing humoral and cellular immune responses, particularly Th1-biased responses.	Applied in mRNA vaccines and DNA vaccines for pigs and cattle	Production process requirements and production costs are relatively high.

Polymeric nanogel adjuvants

Patent for Invention Certificate

Certificate No. 6280703
Title of Invention: Preparation Method and Application of a Rabbit-Specific Water-Soluble Composite Adjuvant
Inventors: XIA Mengyuan, LUO Jun, HE Yi, WANG Fang, LUO Yi, XU Juncai
Patent Number: ZL 2022 1 1114597.3
Filing Date: September 14, 2022
Patentee: Guizhou Firstv Biotechnology Co., Ltd.; Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Address: No. 268, Kechuang South Road, Guiyang National High-Tech Industrial Development Zone, Baiyun District, Guiyang City, Guizhou Province, 550016, China
Date of Grant: August 29, 2023
Grant Publication Number: CN 115444933 B

The company’s proprietary polymer gel adjuvant technology offers the following advantages:

Applicable to a wide range of animal species, including chickens, ducks, geese, pigs, and rabbits;
Compatible with subunit vaccines, bacterins, and viral vaccines;
Low incidence of adverse post-vaccination reactions and rapid absorption at the injection site;
Excellent antigen encapsulation and sustained-release profile, eliciting a stronger protective immune response than aluminum gel-based adjuvants;
As a water-soluble formulation, it ensures easy syringeability and administration, and promotes rapid antibody generation.

Nanoaluminum Gel Adjuvant

Through years of research and animal testing, Firstv Biotech has identified nanoaluminum gel as a highly effective adjuvant following comparative studies with various alternatives. The nanoaluminum gel strongly adsorbs antigens, forming a high-density aggregate. This process preserves the structural integrity and immunogenicity of the antigens while enhancing their delivery to and uptake by antigen-presenting cells (APCs), thereby potentiating a robust immune response. It is well-suited for poultry vaccines targeting bacterial, viral, and recombinant antigens. Its safety profile has been established in mice and weaned piglets, and it also demonstrates excellent biocompatibility in in vitro models using human cells.

Types of Adjuvants	Conventional aluminum adjuvant	Nano-aluminum adjuvant
Particle size	Conventional aluminum gel adjuvants have relatively large particle sizes, such as aluminum hydroxide adjuvants with particle sizes ranging from approximately 1 to 10 μm. This larger particle size limits their binding efficiency with antigens.	The particle size of nanoaluminum adjuvants ranges from 30 to 50 nm. This small particle size endows them with a large specific surface area, thereby increasing the contact surface with antigens.
Immune efficacy	Induces a strong antibody (Th2) response but has a weaker effect on activating cellular immunity (Th1, CTL).	Induce stronger, broader-spectrum immune responses (stronger/faster antibodies, stronger cellular immunity).
Antigen adsorption	Adsorption efficiency may be non-uniform, and antigens within large particles may not be effectively released.	High specific surface area provides more adsorption sites, enabling more complete antigen exposure.
Safety	Conventional aluminum-based adjuvants pose certain safety concerns, such as increased allergy risks and potential local reactions at injection sites including erythema and subcutaneous nodules. Freezing may also compromise vaccine efficacy.	Nano-aluminum gel adjuvants exhibit high safety profiles with minimal adverse reactions. Their small particle size and excellent biocompatibility reduce irritation to poultry organisms, ensuring effective immunity while minimizing potential health risks to birds.

Figure 1: Schematic illustration of adsorption between bacterial antigens and aluminum adjuvants of different grades

Fulewei Vaccine Adjuvant

Our independently developed Fulewei vaccine adjuvant significantly enhances vaccine immunogenicity, elicits a robust immune response, and effectively prolongs antibody persistence, providing stronger disease protection for livestock farmers.

The following presents trial data demonstrating the immune-enhancing effects of Fulewei on existing poultry vaccines. The study evaluated Fulewei components—an immune enhancer (IE) and an immune modulator (IR)—as a supplement to standard inactivated and live Newcastle disease vaccines. These components were admixed at specified ratios. SPF chicks in each group were immunized at 7 days of age. Blood samples were collected weekly post-immunization via cardiac or brachial vein puncture. The resulting serum was analyzed for antibody titers, cytokine concentrations, T lymphocyte subpopulations, and other relevant parameters to assess the impact of the Fulewei adjuvant on serum antibody maintenance and related immune parameters.

As shown in the figure above, a clear response was observed in the IE-enhanced group beginning at week 2, whereas the regular vaccine group showed a noticeable response only from week 3 onward. The vaccine containing the IE immune enhancer demonstrated significantly superior uptake kinetics compared to the standard vaccine group.

As shown in the figure above, the addition of the immune enhancer IE significantly enhances vaccine uptake, as evidenced by necropsy observations that revealed no vaccine residue at the injection site. In contrast, the regular vaccine control group revealed residual vaccine in the muscle tissue.

Reach out to our team of adjuvant specialists to find the ideal “force multiplier” for your vaccine!

Genetically Engineered Subunit Vaccine Platform: Precision-Targeted “Molecular Missiles”

Utilizing both eukaryotic and prokaryotic expression systems, Firstv Biotech excels at the high-yield expression of a diverse range of protein antigens. This capability enables the rational design of subunit vaccines with superior immunogenicity. The resulting products are characterized by high purity and an excellent safety profile, making them ideal for controlling a spectrum of significant animal diseases.

Platform Type	Prokaryotic Expression Platform (E. coli)	Eukaryotic Expression Platform (Insect Cells/CHO Cells)
Expression System	Escherichia coli	Insect Cell-Baculovirus System / Mammalian CHO Cell System
Core Strengths	High speed, high output, low cost	Protein structures are complex, modifications are precise, and activity is high.
Key Technologies	Codon optimization, high-density fermentation, inclusion body denaturation and renaturation technology	Serum-free suspension culture, stable cell line construction, virus-like particle assembly
Suitable for antigen type	Suitable for protein antigens with simple structures that do not require complex modifications.	Suitable for complex antigens requiring precise glycosylation and other post-translational modifications (e.g., viral envelope proteins)

Reverse Genetics Technology Platform: The “High-Speed Engine” for Vaccine Development

Winning the race against emerging and re-emerging viral diseases requires a combination of both speed and precision. The reverse genetics platform established by Firstv Biotech is the central driving force behind our vaccine development pipeline. This technology bypasses a key bottleneck of conventional methods – the reliance on isolating wild-type viruses – by enabling researchers to synthetically reconstruct live viruses directly from genetic sequences. This capability allows for the rapid generation of safe and efficacious vaccine seed strains during the initial phase of an outbreak, providing a crucial technological advantage in combating major animal diseases like Newcastle disease, avian influenza, and infectious bronchitis.

What is Reverse Genetics Technology?

The traditional vaccine development pathway follows a “virus → gene” approach: first isolating wild-type viruses from disease samples, then undergoing lengthy serial passage to attenuate or inactivate the virus to obtain vaccine strains. This process resembles “searching for a needle in a haystack” and carries safety risks such as virulent reversion. Reverse genetics achieves a revolutionary breakthrough by enabling a “gene → virus” approach. It allows our scientists to directly assemble live viruses in the laboratory based on viral genetic sequences, much like building with Lego blocks, creating viruses entirely under our control. In simple terms, reverse genetics is a technology that allows for the “de novo synthesis of viruses in the laboratory.”

To help you visualize this, the core principles and process are illustrated below:

The Significant Advantages of Reverse Genetics Technology

Building on these principles, our reverse genetics platform delivers unprecedented advantages in vaccine research and development:

A Leap in Development Speed: Rapid Response to Outbreaks. Once a pathogen’s genetic sequence is available, we can synthetically generate candidate vaccine viruses (CVVs) within weeks. This completely bypasses the protracted and uncertain process of isolating, waiting for, and adapting wild-type strains.
Preemptive Safety by Design: Eliminating Risks at the Source. A cornerstone advantage of our platform is the preemptive engineering of vaccine safety, eliminating risks at their source. This is achieved by incorporating precise genetic modifications during the synthetic assembly of the viral genome, ensuring the resulting vaccine strain is attenuated and stable.
Precision-Enhanced Efficacy: Engineering Tailored Vaccines. Much like precision engineering, we can design vaccine strains with optimized traits, such as a superior antigenic match to circulating strains and the inclusion of genetic markers to differentiate the vaccine strain from wild viruses.

Full Suspension Cell Culture Platform: The Scalable Foundation for Vaccine Production

Producing high-quality biologics begins with providing cells with an optimal and controllable “growth habitat.” Firstv Biotech’s expertise in full suspension cell culture technology is a core competitive advantage for the industrial-scale production of vaccine antigens. This process moves beyond traditional adherent culture systems, enabling cells to proliferate freely in a liquid medium. It facilitates seamless and standardized scaling from laboratory shake flasks to thousand-liter bioreactors, thereby guaranteeing high batch-to-batch consistency, elevated yields, and superior quality, all in full compliance with GMP standards.

To advance your vaccine or biopharmaceutical production initiatives, we invite you to leverage our advanced cell culture platform.

Rapid Response Platform for Emerging Viruses: The Express Lane for Disease Control

By integrating advanced molecular biology techniques, we have built a seamless platform for the rapid isolation, characterization, and vaccine development targeting field-prevalent strains. This allows for a swift reaction to evolving field outbreaks and the prompt deployment of vaccines precisely matched to circulating strains, providing targeted countermeasures for animal disease control.

Guizhou Firstv Biotechnology Co., Ltd. is built upon a foundation of technological excellence and propelled by a culture of innovation. As we are dedicated to continuously advancing vaccine manufacturing technologies and evolving our product portfolio, our commitment is to emerge as a globally trusted, science-led company within the animal health industry. We are eager to join forces with partners across the sector to promote sustainable animal health and strengthen the security of the public health ecosystem.