CEPI Awards Up to $8.9M to Pune's Immunoscript for Thermostable saRNA Vaccine Platform
核心洞察
CEPI will provide up to $8.9 million to Immunoscript Life Science (搜索) to advance clinical testing of its thermostable CLNE self-amplifying RNA vaccine platform.
The platform uses a nanoemulsion design intended to keep vaccines stable at 2°C to 8°C, removing reliance on ultra-cold-chain storage and transport.
Funding supports an early Phase I safety and immunogenicity trial of a rabies vaccine candidate (搜索) in India, expected to begin within six months pending regulatory approval.
The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (搜索) (CEPI) will award up to $8.9 million (nearly ₹85 crore) to Pune-based Immunoscript Life Science (搜索) to advance clinical testing of its thermostable self-amplifying RNA (saRNA) vaccine platform, the organization announced. The funding is designated for the company's proprietary CLNE saRNA platform, which CEPI said could be deployed in communities where cold-chain infrastructure is limited.
The award comes just 69 days after the company's incorporation. "It is day 69 since the start of the company, and the company received its first funding," Immunoscript Founder and Chief Executive Dr Sanjay Singh told businessline. Singh previously served as Chief Executive of Gennova Biopharmaceuticals (搜索), the company behind India's only mRNA Covid-19 (搜索) vaccine and a subsidiary of Emcure Pharma (搜索).
A Nanoemulsion Approach to Cold-Chain Barriers
The CLNE platform, developed and authorized in India during the COVID-19 (搜索) pandemic and now owned by Immunoscript, is described by CEPI as an alternative world-first technology using a "nanoemulsion" design. The platform is intended to produce vaccines stable at standard refrigeration temperatures of 2°C to 8°C, eliminating the need for the complex and expensive ultra-cold-chain infrastructure that currently limits global vaccine access.
CEPI noted that while mRNA vaccines played a key role during the COVID-19 (搜索) pandemic — being fast and flexible in design compared with traditional vaccine approaches — their utility has been constrained by the need for ultra-low-temperature storage and transport to remain stable and effective. "During an outbreak, this can impact access to doses in low-resource or remote settings that lack the equipment needed to prevent vaccines from spoiling, hindering efforts to save lives and contain the spread of disease," CEPI stated.
Rabies as Proof-of-Concept, With AI-Guided Dosing
Immunoscript scientists will conduct an early-stage trial in people to assess the safety of the CLNE saRNA vaccine technology and the immune response elicited after vaccination against the rabies (搜索) virus. Singh said a new-generation rabies vaccine is required, and the pathogen will serve as a prototype to demonstrate the technology against diseases other than COVID-19 (搜索).
The study is expected to launch in India, with researchers using artificial intelligence tools to determine the optimal dose of the vaccine candidate in people, according to CEPI. The funding supports early Phase I human trials for safety, which Singh said would start once regulatory approvals are received in India, with a tentative six-month timeline.
Alignment With the 100 Days Mission
CEPI said the platform is considered pivotal to the "100 Days Mission" campaign, spearheaded by CEPI and backed by India and other G20 and G7 nations, to develop vaccines against emerging diseases (Disease X (搜索)) in as little as 100 days.
"India already serves as one of the world's major vaccine hubs. Today's further backing of Immunoscript's next-generation CLNE™ saRNA vaccine platform pushes their pioneering science sector forward, better preparing both India and the world against deadly emerging threats including a future 'Disease X (搜索),'" said Dr Richard Hatchett, Chief Executive Officer of CEPI.
Company Background and Risk Profile
Immunoscript is a private entity incorporated in April 2026. In July 2026, the company expanded its operational base by acquiring the mRNA business unit from Gennova Biopharmaceuticals (搜索) for ₹139.5 crore, an acquisition that provided the new entity with established research capabilities it is now scaling to meet international pandemic preparedness standards.
As an early-stage startup, Immunoscript faces the high-risk nature of clinical research, reliance on non-dilutive grant funding for research and development, and the operational complexity of scaling a technology from a research unit to clinical validation. The company is unlisted and does not file financial reports with exchanges such as NSE or BSE.