The Engineering Chemical Technology Center (ECTC) and Tomsk State University (TSU) have certified a sample of a domestically produced beta-propiolactone (BPL), a virus-inactivating agent used in the manufacture of vaccines against influenza, hepatitis A, rabies, coronavirus, as well as veterinary vaccines. The purity of the Russian BPL was confirmed at 99.6%, the university’s press service said.
The need for a local alternative arose in 2022 when supplies of BPL to Russia were halted. The same year, TSU received a grant from the Agency for Technological Development to draft technical and engineering documentation for the inactivator production technology. The technology was later transferred to the university’s partner, the ECTC, which launched a pilot production unit at a law-tonnage chemical facility in Tomsk. Full-cycle production of the Russian beta-propiolactone was launched in 2024.
According to Alexey Knyazev, director of the ECTC, beta-propiolactone stability tests at different temperatures are currently underway to guarantee the product’s quality throughout its shelf life. The center’s capacity allows for the production of up to 1,000 liters of BPL per year, which fully meets the demands of the Russian pharmaceutical market for the production of essential vaccines.
The Tomsk-produced beta-propiolactone has been included in the approved supplier registry of OOO Fort (part of the Natsimbio holding of state corporation Rostec), signaling the confidence of a major vaccine manufacturer in the new domestic product, the press service noted.
