Leading the way in advancing the influenza vaccine, AB&B BIO-TECH-B (02627) is expected to fill the gap in the maternal and child vaccine market.

Recently, AB&B BIO-TECH-B (02627) has made important progress one after another. The company's core product - the domestic four-valent influenza subunit vaccine, which is currently the only one covering all age groups in China, has once again been included in the latest influenza vaccine vaccination guidelines released by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention. At the same time, Zhonghui Biosciences is actively promoting a clinical study on the vaccination of this vaccine for pregnant women, with the future possibility of expanding the target population to include pregnant women and infants aged 0-6 months, achieving a new breakthrough in product development. Initiating clinical studies in pregnant women to explore potential market opportunities Public data shows that pregnant women are one of the high-risk groups vulnerable to influenza and related complications. During pregnancy, a series of physiological and immune system changes make pregnant women more susceptible to influenza viruses, and the risk of severe illness, death, miscarriage, premature birth, and even impacting fetal organ development in the early stages of pregnancy is also relatively higher compared to non-pregnant women. Although the World Health Organization has indicated that it is safe for pregnant women to receive inactivated flu vaccines at any gestational week, and there is currently no evidence to suggest that vaccination can cause fetal abnormalities, the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention also recommends pregnant women for vaccination. However, due to concerns about the safety of vaccination, most of the previously marketed influenza vaccines in China still list pregnant women as a contraindicated or cautious group. The influenza vaccination rate among pregnant women in China is much lower than that in European and American countries. The main reason for this is the lack of clinical safety and efficacy data for influenza vaccination of local pregnant women in China, and the inadequate understanding of pregnancy vaccination among healthcare professionals and the public. As the first adjuvanted influenza subunit vaccine in China that covers all age groups, Zhonghui Biosciences' four-valent influenza subunit vaccine has an age range from 6 months old infants to the elderly. Currently, the company is working to further expand its vaccination range to include pregnant women and infants aged 0-6 months. In March 2025, Zhonghui Biosciences, together with the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University and the Yuzhong District Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Chongqing, jointly launched a study on the safety and immunogenicity of pregnant women receiving the four-valent influenza subunit vaccine (trade name: Huierkangxin). As of now, the project has achieved intermediate stage progress. Experts point out that the infant immune system is not yet fully developed and is susceptible to interference from maternal antibodies, resulting in a weaker immune response after vaccination. Vaccination during pregnancy can not only protect the mother but also transfer antibodies to the fetus through the placenta, providing immune protection to infants within the first 6 months after birth, an effective means of double protection for maternal and infant health. Therefore, if Zhonghui Biosciences' research yields positive results, Huierkangxin is expected to become the first flu vaccine specifically for pregnant women in China. This move will not only fill the gap in local clinical data for pregnant women influenza vaccines in China, promote the influenza prevention and control process in the pregnant women group but also help Zhonghui Biosciences to take the lead in tapping into the potential market of pregnant women flu vaccines, further consolidate its differentiation and competitive advantage in the high-end vaccine field. Core products recommended in national guidelines, innovatively establishing industry benchmarks It is understood that traditional split influenza vaccines chemically split to remove the viral nucleic acids while retaining the viral surface antigen and internal antigen components. This process preserves more viral structures, simplifies the production process, and has lower costs, making it widely used in the market. In contrast, Zhonghui Biosciences' four-valent influenza subunit vaccine uses a unique process to precisely extract key effective antigens (HA and NA) from influenza viruses, with vaccine purity exceeding 85%. By removing non-essential viral components, the resulting immune response after vaccination is relatively mild, with a lower rate of adverse reactions and excellent safety performance; at the same time, strong antigenicity can effectively stimulate the body to produce a targeted immune response, demonstrating good immunogenicity, especially suitable for the elderly, children, and the vulnerable population. Currently, the competition in the domestic influenza vaccine market is fierce, with many companies such as Hualan Biological Vaccine Inc., Nanjing Hicin Pharmaceutical, and Tus-Pharmaceutical Group have already entered the race for influenza vaccines. Zhonghui Biosciences' Huierkangxin, as the first domestic four-valent subunit influenza vaccine covering all age groups, stands out in the high-end subunit influenza vaccine field, with less competitive pressure. It is worth noting that the four-valent influenza subunit vaccine has once again been included in the latest "Chinese Influenza Vaccine Prevention Vaccination Technical Guidelines (2025-2026)" issued by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, specifically recommended for people aged 6 months and above. This signifies that Zhonghui Biosciences is gradually becoming a new benchmark leading the industry standards and industrial upgrading direction with its leading innovative technologies. In addition, in the preliminary review of the 2025 National Basic Medical Insurance Catalog and Commercial Insurance Innovative Drug Catalog, Zhonghui Biosciences' four-valent influenza subunit vaccine became the only vaccine product approved for commercial health insurance payment, marking the first access qualification for preventive medical products to receive commercial health insurance payment. In the future, it is expected to alleviate the payment pressure for high-priced innovative vaccines and enhance their market accessibility. Overall, with its unique innovative vaccines, Zhonghui Biosciences has become a company with scarce value in the influenza prevention market. As subunit vaccines gradually replace traditional split vaccines in the future, Zhonghui Biosciences' scarcity and first-mover advantage have already paved a clear path for long-term growth.