Cutting-edge technologies are the driving force behind our research and vaccine development. Our innovative vaccine technology platform – AdVac® – offers real hope for the accelerated development of vaccines, and is designed to help the global health community better prepare for and combat life-threatening infectious disease outbreaks.[1]
This technology was used in the development of our Ebola vaccine regimen, which was approved by the European Commission in July 2020.[2], [3] The AdVac® technology was also used to construct our HIV, RSV and Zika vaccine candidates.[3]
The COVID-19 vaccine research programme is using Janssen’s AdVac® technology to help combat the current COVID-19 pandemic.[3]
AdVac® viral vector technology
Adenoviruses are a group of viruses that cause the common cold – so they are expert at transporting things into humans.[4]
Janssen’s AdVac® vectors are based on a specific type of adenovirus[5] that has been genetically modified so that it can no longer replicate in humans and cause disease.[6]



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References
[1]ClinicalTrials.gov. Search results: Ad26 and Janssen. Available at: https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/results?term=Ad26+and+Janssen&Search=Search. Accessed: December 2020.
[2]European Commission. Vaccine against Ebola: Commission grants new market authorisations. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_1248 Accessed: December 2020.
[3]CDC. About Adenoviruses. Symptoms. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/adenovirus/about/symptoms.html. Accessed: December 2020.
[4]Tatsis N, Ertl HC. Adenoviruses as vaccine vectors. Molecular Therapy. 2004;10(4):616-29.
[5] Milligan ID, et al. Safety and Immunogenicity of Novel Adenovirus Type 26– and Modified Vaccinia Ankara–Vectored Ebola Vaccines. JAMA. 2016;315(15):1610.
[6] Barouch et al. International seroepidemiology of adenovirus serotypes 5, 26, 35, and 48 in pediatric and adult populations. Vaccine. 2011;29(32):5203-9.
[7]LiveScience. How Do Vaccines Work? Available at: https://www.livescience.com/32617-how-do-vaccines-work.html. Accessed: December 2020.
[8]CDC. Understanding how vaccines work. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/conversations/downloads/vacsafe-underst.... Accessed: December 2020.
[9] Winslow RL, et al. Immune responses to novel adenovirus type 26 and modified vaccinia virus Ankara–vectored Ebola vaccines at 1 year. JAMA. 2017;317(10):1075-7.
[10]UNAIDS. Global Report UNAIDS Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic. Available: https://www.unaids.org/en/resources/documents/2013/20130923_UNAIDS_Globa.... Accessed: December 2020.