Intercell, GSK team up for Patch Vaccines

Britain's Glaxosmithkline said it was teaming up with Austrian vaccine maker Intercell to develop patch vaccines that can be delivered without needles. GSK will make an up-front cash contribution of €33.6 million and an equity investment of up to €84 million via staggered share purchases of up to 5% of the company. The deal will include Intercell's candidate vaccine for travellers' diarrhea, which is currently in final stage clinical trials, and a potential single application pandemic flu vaccine which is in Phase II trials. The firms said they would also be exploring the use of the patch technology for other vaccines in GSK's portfolio.