Developer and Partnership Differences in COVID-19 and Other Infections: Insights from DNA Vaccines

Abstract

Historically, vaccine development has been heavily supported by government and public institutions. On the other hand, private biopharmaceutical companies have played a significant role in the development of innovative new therapies using novel pharmaceutical technologies. COVID-19 vaccines using new vaccine technologies, such as mRNA and adenoviral vectors, were rapidly developed by emerging biopharmaceutical companies in collaboration with large corporations and public organizations. This underscores the crucial role of emerging biopharma and public–private partnerships in advancing new vaccine technologies. While these innovations have been suggested as models for future vaccines, their applicability to other infectious diseases requires careful assessment. This study investigated the characteristics of the developers and partnerships in the development of DNA vaccines as a next-generation vaccine platform. The analysis revealed that while emerging biopharmaceutical companies and private–private and private–public partnerships were crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic, public organizations and public–public collaborations primarily led to the clinical development of vaccines for other diseases. Strategies for vaccine development using new vaccine technologies should be tailored to the specific characteristics of each disease.