Partnering with Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), Taconic helps to create a world without polio. GPEI is a public-private partnership led by national governments with five partners -- the World Health Organization (WHO), Rotary International, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Its goal is to eradicate polio worldwide. There is no cure for polio; it can only be prevented by immunization. Prior to release, each polio vaccine batch must undergo testing by the manufacturer, and the test results are reviewed by the National Regulatory Authority for biological substances (NRA) of the country where the Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV) is produced. In addition, the National Control Laboratory conducts a battery of tests on randomly selected batches.
Each OPV batch undergoes a neurovirulence test in transgenic mice susceptible to polio to ensure efficacy. The only WHO-approved strain for this important work is the TgPVR mouse line developed by CIEA in Japan. Access to the transgenic mice is tightly controlled. They are distributed by Taconic Biosciences. Taconic also serves as the backup production provider, as a contingency to ensure TgPVR supply in an emergency.