Profectus Biosciences

About Profectus Biosciences

Profectus BioSciences was a clinical-stage vaccine development company focused on creating preventive and therapeutic vaccines. The company was founded in 2005 by Drs. Robert Gallo, William Blattner, and Robert Redfield to commercialize technologies for reducing morbidity and mortality from human viral diseases.

Profectus developed proprietary technology platforms, including VesiculoVax™ and PBS Vax™, to create vaccines for infectious diseases and oncolytic vaccines for cancer immunotherapy. The VesiculoVax™ platform, based on discoveries from Yale University, was designed for rapid protection against emerging infectious diseases like Ebola, Marburg, and Lassa fever. The company's pipeline included a vaccine for Ebola that entered Phase 1 clinical trials and a trivalent vaccine to protect against multiple species of Ebola and Marburg viruses. Profectus also worked on vaccines for HIV, Chikungunya, and Nipah/Hendra viruses.

The firm received significant non-dilutive funding from U.S. federal agencies, including the NIH, to advance its vaccine candidates. In February 2020, Aurobindo Pharma's subsidiary, Auro Vaccines LLC, acquired the business assets of Profectus BioSciences for an upfront cash consideration of $11.29 million, plus potential milestone-based earn-outs. This acquisition provided Aurobindo with Profectus's technology platforms, R&D center, and scientific team to enhance its vaccine development capabilities.