‘Preparing for the next pandemic’: VIDO awarded $24M to develop ‘broadly protective vaccine’

Watch: Saskatoon scientists get a cash commitment aimed at pandemic preparedness

The University of Saskatchewan’s Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) has received a $24 million grant to strengthen Canada’s preparedness for future pandemics.

The money will help VIDO develop a “broadly protective vaccine.”

“They’re not protecting against one variant or two variants, they’re protecting against whole families of viruses,” VIDO CEO Volker Gerdts said.

Gerdts said researchers are trying to predict future strains of the coronavirus.

“It’s all about predicting what is coming in the future and being ready for it,” Gerdts said.

The grant is from the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) — a non-profit that works with philanthropic groups, government, and private-sector companies. CEPI’s mission is to accelerate the development of vaccines.

Terry Duguid, the federal minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada (PrairiesCan), announced the funding boost.

“We’re really preparing for the next pandemic,” Duguid told journalists.

“We had H1N1, we had SARS. Those were wake-up calls, but still, we weren’t prepared for the kind of pandemic that COVID brought.”

VIDO is building a Containment Level 4 (CL4) Lab — the highest biological safety level, used for handling the most dangerous and high-risk pathogens.

The only other CL4 lab in Canada is in Winnipeg.

Gerdts said VIDO’s CL4 lab is about two years away from opening.