Medicago contributes CA$500,000 to help establish Class 3 containment laboratory at Université Laval
Remaining two-thirds of the funds will be provided by the City of Quebec and the research centre's foundation
Medicago, a Canadian developer of plant-based therapeutic proteins and vaccines, will contribute one-third of the CA$1.5m financing for a new Class 3 containment laboratory to be located at Université Laval's Infectious Disease Research Centre.
The City of Quebec and the research centre's foundation will provide the remaining funds required to launch laboratory operations.
'We are very pleased to support this local project of importance for Quebec City,' said Andy Sheldon, President and CEO of Medicago. 'This laboratory will contribute to the development of a centre of excellence of an international calibre, and create significant value for the biotechnology sector.'
Medicago says a CL3 lab is an indispensable tool for conducting pre-clinical studies to advance the research and development of vaccines and other pharmaceuticals. The difficulty of access to CL3 laboratories frequently requires researchers to use resources located outside Quebec and Canada, often in Europe or the US.
Sheldon made the commitment, on 24 October 2014, on Medicago's behalf, to provide one-third of the amount required to launch the laboratory's operations.