Moderna acquires Japanese firm for $114m to boost its mRNA manufacturing process

SINGAPORE - Biotech company Moderna, most well known for its Covid-19 vaccines, will acquire Japanese firm OriCiro Genomics K.K. for US$85 million (S$114 million) to strengthen its manufacturing capabilities.

Employing OriCiro’s technology in the American company’s mRNA manufacturing process will shorten the time taken by around 25 per cent to 30 per cent, chief executive of Moderna Stephane Bancel told The Straits Times last Wednesday in a virtual interview from Boston.

OriCiro specialises in cell-free DNA synthesis and amplification technologies, where large amounts of plasmid DNA can be synthesised without the need for cells.

This can replace conventional cell-based methods that rely on the bacteria E. coli, which are more time-consuming.

“This will allow our research process to be accelerated – we will enter clinical trials faster, and the time taken for our vaccines to reach patients will also be faster,” said Mr Bancel of Moderna’s first-ever acquisition. 

Citing an example of the Omicron vaccine booster, he noted that it took just eight weeks from the time Moderna started to develop it in 2022 to the time it was made available in pharmacies in America for Covid-19 patients.

“It was remarkable. But if we had this technology, it will be reduced by two to three weeks to take just five to six weeks,” said Mr Bancel.

The speed and ease in which such vaccines can be developed will also allow them to be tailored to different populations. For instance, a flu vaccine could be customised to a particular strain circulating in that population, thereby increasing its efficacy.

OriCiro’s technology was invented by Dr Masayuki Suetsugu of Rikkyo University. He is a co-founder of the company and started it through his research under a programme funded by the Japanese government. 

There are two key advantages of OriCiro’s technology. First, it reduces time and labour because the DNA cloning process is faster than traditional methods.

The second is that the technology can accomplish what conventional technology currently cannot do. It is also able to put together multiple DNA fragments to form a large DNA molecule.

Mr Bancel hopes to grow the team in Japan from about 20 to 30 people currently to around 100 to 150.

“But the size of the team is not the priority, what’s important is the quality of the people,” he said.

The team in Japan will continue to innovate and improve the technology, and this will then be transferred to Moderna’s other plants around the world.

In December 2022, Moderna also

announced its new Singapore general manager, Ms Evelyn Pang,

who will head and grow its office here.

She will be setting up a team to oversee a range of functions to support commercial and medical activities in the market.