Drug Discovery and Development

  • Home Drug Discovery and Development
  • Drug Discovery
  • Women in Pharma and Biotech
  • Oncology
  • Neurological Disease
  • Infectious Disease
  • Resources
    • Video features
    • Podcast
    • Voices
    • Webinars
  • Pharma 50
    • 2025 Pharma 50
    • 2024 Pharma 50
    • 2023 Pharma 50
    • 2022 Pharma 50
    • 2021 Pharma 50
  • Advertise
  • SUBSCRIBE

Vir Biotechnology parts from GSK in its development of next-gen COVID-19 therapies

By Brian Buntz | February 13, 2023

VirVir Biotechnology (Nasdaq: VIR) has amended its research collaboration with GSK to reflect its ongoing efforts to develop next-generation COVID-19 therapies. The former company said it would continue developing COVID-19 therapies alone or in cooperation with other partners.

Vir and GSK will continue collaborating to ensure ongoing access to the monoclonal antibody sotrovimab, where it remains authorized.

Under the revised terms of the agreement, Vir retains exclusive rights to pursue the development of new therapies resulting from the joint coronavirus vaccine and antibody initiatives, with a tiered royalty payment ranging from low to mid-single digits to GSK.

The companies will continue working on sotrovimab (VIR-7831) and VIR-7832, a monoclonal antibody with a dual mechanism of action aimed at the spike glycoprotein of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Today, VIR shares held steady, ticking up 0.11% to $26.18. GSK shares were up about 1% to $36.23.

FDA withdrew EUA for sotrovimab

In April 2022, the FDA withdrew emergency use authorization for sotrovimab due to the rise of the omicron BA.2 SARS-CoV-2 sub-variant.

The federal government has withdrawn EUAs for a range of monoclonal antibodies, owing to the rise of variant.s

The GSK and Vir collaboration centered around Vir’s proprietary monoclonal antibody platform technology.

The companies expanded their collaboration in 2021 to include R&D on developing novel treatments for influenza and other respiratory viruses.

Via Biotechnology’s other efforts

About a year ago, Vir Biotechnology announced the expansion of its partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, focusing on the development of broadly neutralizing antibodies. The aim is to provide a vaccinal effect for treating HIV and preventing malaria.

Vir Biotechnology said it would work to develop a functional cure for HIV, which it frames as “life-long control of the virus after a finite duration of therapy.”

In January 2023, Vir announced its CEO, George Scangos, would step down from his role as CEO on April 3, 2023. The board has named Marianne De Backer as his successor. De Backer now holds the positions of executive vice president, head of pharmaceuticals strategy, business development and licensing/open innovation at Vir. De Backer will also become a member of Vir’s board.


Filed Under: Infectious Disease
Tagged With: Vir Biotechnology
 

About The Author

Brian Buntz

As the pharma and biotech editor at WTWH Media, Brian has almost two decades of experience in B2B media, with a focus on healthcare and technology. While he has long maintained a keen interest in AI, more recently Brian has made making data analysis a central focus, and is exploring tools ranging from NLP and clustering to predictive analytics.

Throughout his 18-year tenure, Brian has covered an array of life science topics, including clinical trials, medical devices, and drug discovery and development. Prior to WTWH, he held the title of content director at Informa, where he focused on topics such as connected devices, cybersecurity, AI and Industry 4.0. A dedicated decade at UBM saw Brian providing in-depth coverage of the medical device sector. Engage with Brian on LinkedIn or drop him an email at bbuntz@wtwhmedia.com.

Related Articles Read More >

Secretary of Health removes all current members of the CDC advisory committee on immunization practices
covid-19 vaccine
FDA COVID booster pullback jolts vaccine stocks before gains cool
Coronavirus Covid-19 background - 3d rendering
Pregnancy associated with less long COVID: Researchers call for studies on protective biology
How technology advances are helping scientists unlock the mysteries of zoonotic diseases
“ddd
EXPAND YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND STAY CONNECTED
Get the latest news and trends happening now in the drug discovery and development industry.

MEDTECH 100 INDEX

Medtech 100 logo
Market Summary > Current Price
The MedTech 100 is a financial index calculated using the BIG100 companies covered in Medical Design and Outsourcing.
Drug Discovery and Development
  • MassDevice
  • DeviceTalks
  • Medtech100 Index
  • Medical Design Sourcing
  • Medical Design & Outsourcing
  • Medical Tubing + Extrusion
  • Subscribe to our E-Newsletter
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • R&D World
  • Drug Delivery Business News
  • Pharmaceutical Processing World

Copyright © 2025 WTWH Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of WTWH Media
Privacy Policy | Advertising | About Us

Search Drug Discovery & Development

  • Home Drug Discovery and Development
  • Drug Discovery
  • Women in Pharma and Biotech
  • Oncology
  • Neurological Disease
  • Infectious Disease
  • Resources
    • Video features
    • Podcast
    • Voices
    • Webinars
  • Pharma 50
    • 2025 Pharma 50
    • 2024 Pharma 50
    • 2023 Pharma 50
    • 2022 Pharma 50
    • 2021 Pharma 50
  • Advertise
  • SUBSCRIBE