Microgen (russian: Микроген) is

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

's largest producer of immunobiological products, one of the three largest pharmaceutical companies in Russia. According to the Russian Minister of Health,

Veronika Skvortsova Veroníka Ígorevna Skvortsóva (russian: Верони́ка И́горевна Скворцо́ва; born November 1, 1960, in Moscow) is a Russian neurologist and politician. She served as the Minister of Health of the Russian Federation from ...

, Microgen is of strategic importance for Russia's

national security National security, or national defence, is the security and defence of a sovereign state, including its citizens, economy, and institutions, which is regarded as a duty of government. Originally conceived as protection against military atta ...

History

The Scientific and Production Association Microgen was established in May 2003 as a result of the merger of state-owned enterprises producing medical immunobiological products and other medical drugs. Following a decision of the

Russian Government The Government of Russia exercises executive power in the Russian Federation. The members of the government are the prime minister, the deputy prime ministers, and the federal ministers. It has its legal basis in the Constitution of the Russia ...

, the association was created "to provide for the country's needs for preventive, diagnostic and therapeutic immunobiological preparations". In 2006, Microgen started shipping its combined vaccines against whooping cough,

diphtheria Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild clinical course, but in some outbreaks more than 10% of those diagnosed with the disease may die. Signs and s ...

tetanus Tetanus, also known as lockjaw, is a bacterial infection caused by ''Clostridium tetani'', and is characterized by muscle spasms. In the most common type, the spasms begin in the jaw and then progress to the rest of the body. Each spasm usually ...

and hepatitis B, as well as against tetanus,

and hepatitis B (DTP-Hep B, Hepatitis-Td). In 2010, Microgen began production of an improved formula for dry live

influenza vaccine Influenza vaccines, also known as flu shots, are vaccines that protect against infection by influenza viruses. New versions of the vaccines are developed twice a year, as the influenza virus rapidly changes. While their effectiveness varies fr ...

"Ultravak". In 2011, the company received the first samples of

bacteriophage A bacteriophage (), also known informally as a ''phage'' (), is a duplodnaviria virus that infects and replicates within bacteria and archaea. The term was derived from "bacteria" and the Greek φαγεῖν ('), meaning "to devour". Bacteri ...

preparation against the pathogen Acinetobacter, which is the causative agent of a large number of hospital-acquired (nosocomial) infections and is resistant to

antibiotics An antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the treatment and prevention o ...

. Microgen started testing a new anti-tick vaccine for children. In 2011, Microgen supplied more than 60 million doses of vaccines to the various regions of Russia, including BCG (

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

), Grippol, DTP (diphtheria, tetanus),

measles Measles is a highly contagious infectious disease caused by measles virus. Symptoms usually develop 10–12 days after exposure to an infected person and last 7–10 days. Initial symptoms typically include fever, often greater than , cough, ...

and

rubella Rubella, also known as German measles or three-day measles, is an infection caused by the rubella virus. This disease is often mild, with half of people not realizing that they are infected. A rash may start around two weeks after exposure and ...

, as well as more than 12 million doses of influenza vaccine. In 2012, Microgen began preparations for the transition to the International Standards of Pharmaceutical Manufacturing (

GMP GMP may refer to: Finance and economics * Gross metropolitan product * Guaranteed maximum price * Guaranteed Minimum Pension Science and technology * GNU Multiple Precision Arithmetic Library, a software library * Granulocyte-macrophage progenit ...

). In the same year, the company delivered more than two million packages of bacteriophages and 19 million doses of influenza vaccine. In 2013, in addition to the existing vaccine against avian influenza (strain H5N1), Microgen initiated the development of pre-pandemic " Chinese flu" vaccine (strain H7N9). Peter Kanygin, formerly Head of a Rostec structure, was appointed as the director-general of the company. The association's net income has reached 1 bln. rubel. In March 2014 the company announced the development of a new generation of vaccines against tick-borne

encephalitis Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain. The severity can be variable with symptoms including reduction or alteration in consciousness, headache, fever, confusion, a stiff neck, and vomiting. Complications may include seizures, hallucinations, ...

based on continuous cell lines. In April 2014, Microgen announced the launch of clinical trials of the new combined penta-vaccine aDTB-HepB-Hib (diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, hepatitis B, and infections caused by

Haemophilus influenzae ''Haemophilus influenzae'' (formerly called Pfeiffer's bacillus or ''Bacillus influenzae'') is a Gram-negative, non-motile, coccobacillary, facultatively anaerobic, capnophilic pathogenic bacterium of the family Pasteurellaceae. The bacteria ...

Structure and management

Microgen is a Russian state company. Because of the special status of the company, its work is controlled personally by the

Prime Minister of Russia The chairman of the government of the Russian Federation, also informally known as the prime minister, is the nominal head of government of Russia. Although the post dates back to 1905, its current form was established on 12 December 1993 fo ...

. General Director – Peter Kanygin. In 2014, Microgen united nine operating companies located in 9 cities across Russia. Its major production sites are located in Stavropol,

Irkutsk Irkutsk ( ; rus, Иркутск, p=ɪrˈkutsk; Buryat language, Buryat and mn, Эрхүү, ''Erhüü'', ) is the largest city and administrative center of Irkutsk Oblast, Russia. With a population of 617,473 as of the 2010 Census, Irkutsk is ...

Nizhny Novgorod Nizhny Novgorod ( ; rus, links=no, Нижний Новгород, a=Ru-Nizhny Novgorod.ogg, p=ˈnʲiʐnʲɪj ˈnovɡərət ), colloquially shortened to Nizhny, from the 13th to the 17th century Novgorod of the Lower Land, formerly known as Gork ...

("ImBio"),

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

Tomsk Tomsk ( rus, Томск, p=tomsk, sty, Түң-тора) is a city and the administrative center of Tomsk Oblast in Russia, located on the Tom River. Population: Founded in 1604, Tomsk is one of the oldest cities in Siberia. The city is a not ...

("Virion"), Perm ("Biomed") and Ufa ("Immunopreparat"). The company has a staff of more than 6,000 people. Since March 1, 2019, the sole executive body of NPO Microgen JSC has been Nacimbio JSC. In 2021, the Rostec State Corporation transferred 100% of the shares of NPO Microgen to the Nacimbio holding

Production

The company produces more than 70% of the total Russian immunobiological products, including two of the four vaccines against

A/H1N1 In virology, influenza A virus subtype H1N1 (A/H1N1) is a subtype of influenza A virus. Major outbreaks of H1N1 strains in humans include the Spanish flu, the 1977 Russian flu pandemic and the 2009 swine flu pandemic. It is an orthomyxovirus ...

. Microgen also has a monopoly on the production of a number of other vaccines. In 2013, the company controlled 23% of the Russian market of medicines from donated

blood plasma Blood plasma is a light amber-colored liquid component of blood in which blood cells are absent, but contains proteins and other constituents of whole blood in suspension. It makes up about 55% of the body's total blood volume. It is the intra ...

. The company supplies 70% of vaccines and

toxoid A toxoid is an inactivated toxin (usually an exotoxin) whose toxicity has been suppressed either by chemical (formalin) or heat treatment, while other properties, typically immunogenicity, are maintained. Toxins are secreted by bacteria, wherea ...

s included in the National Immunisation Calendar of Russia. Microgen produces a range of over 120 immunobiological products: vaccines, sera, specific and polyvalent

immunoglobulin An antibody (Ab), also known as an immunoglobulin (Ig), is a large, Y-shaped protein used by the immune system to identify and neutralize foreign objects such as pathogenic bacteria and viruses. The antibody recognizes a unique molecule of the ...

nutrient medium A growth medium or culture medium is a solid, liquid, or semi-solid designed to support the growth of a population of microorganisms or cells via the process of cell proliferation or small plants like the moss ''Physcomitrella patens''. Different ...

allergen An allergen is a type of antigen that produces an abnormally vigorous immune response in which the immune system fights off a perceived threat that would otherwise be harmless to the body. Such reactions are called allergies. In technical terms ...

probiotic Probiotics are live microorganisms promoted with claims that they provide health benefits when consumed, generally by improving or restoring the gut microbiota. Probiotics are considered generally safe to consume, but may cause bacteria-host i ...

s etc. Of these, 60 products are included in the Russian list of vital and essential medicines. Microgen is the only enterprise in Russia producing

s on an industrial scale. Its medical drugs and products are exported to

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

, Belarus,

Uzbekistan Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked cou ...

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...

, Georgia,

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

and

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Research

The company is developing more than 15 products, including a new version of influenza vaccine, tissue culture vaccines against varicella, rabies, tick-borne encephalitis, combined vaccines DTP-HepB-Hib, HepB-aDTP-Hib and MMR (measles,

mumps MUMPS ("Massachusetts General Hospital Utility Multi-Programming System"), or M, is an imperative, high-level programming language with an integrated transaction processing key–value database. It was originally developed at Massachusetts Gener ...

and rubella) and complex preparations of bacteriophages, etc. Microgen is involved in several international research projects, including the WHO program to combat

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...

, measles, rubella, tuberculosis, avian influenza, etc. Since 2013, Microgen has been involved in the development of a new drug for the treatment of

leukaemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ' ...

and other

antitumor drug Chemotherapy (often abbreviated to chemo and sometimes CTX or CTx) is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs ( chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemothera ...

s. In 2014, the company announced the launch of clinical trials of the drug "Relatoks" (

botulinum toxin Botulinum toxin, or botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT), is a neurotoxic protein produced by the bacterium ''Clostridium botulinum'' and related species. It prevents the release of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine from axon endings at the neuromusc ...

type A – haemagglutinin complex) in paediatric neurology The research projects of the company involve over 130 PhD Candidates and more than 30 Doctors of Science. Microgen is among the ten most innovative companies in Russia, according to

RBC Group The RBC Group, or RosBiznesConsulting (russian: Группа компаний «РБК» РБК, РосБизнесКонсалтинг), is a Russian media group headquartered in Moscow. It was established in 1993. The company holds an infor ...

ratings.

Finance

The company's 2013

revenue In accounting, revenue is the total amount of income generated by the sale of goods and services related to the primary operations of the business. Commercial revenue may also be referred to as sales or as turnover. Some companies receive reven ...

amounted to RUB 7.6 bln., net profit - RUB 1 bln. In 2012, the company was the fifth largest in terms of revenue among all Russian pharmaceutical manufacturers. On the basis of 2012 results, the DSM Group analysts estimated the company's overall turnover at RUB 5.1 bln. One of the company's branches ("Virion", Tomsk) in 2013 supplied RUB 950 mln. worth of products. In 2012 the company completed 43 State contracts, totalling more than RUB 1.8 bln. In 2011, revenues from exports reached RUB 500 mln. The same year, Microgen has spent close to RUB 2 bln. of its own funds on the construction of 2 pharmaceutical plants and a laboratory. By 2018 the company plans to spend RUB 17 bln. on the modernisation of its production processes. In 2014, Russia's VTB Bank extended a credit line for the FSUE SPA Microgen to the amount of RUB 2 bln., for a period of 3 years. The company is state-owned, but does not receive subsidies from the State budget.

References

{{reflist, colwidth=30em 2003 establishments in Russia Manufacturing companies based in Moscow Vaccine producers Federal State Unitary Enterprises of Russia Rostec Pharmaceutical companies of Russia