Company:Adimmune

Adimmune Corporation

Native name	國光生物科技股份有限公司
Type	Public
Traded as	Template:TWSE
Industry	Biopharmaceuticals, vaccines
Founded	1965
Headquarters	Taichung , Taiwan
Key people	Chi-Shean Chan (Chairman & CEO)
Products	Human vaccines (influenza, JE, tetanus, etc.); CDMO services
Website	www.adimmune.com.tw/en/

Adimmune Corporation (Chinese: 國光生物科技股份有限公司) is a Taiwanese biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Taichung. Originally founded in 1965 as Taiwan’s first vaccine laboratory, it later evolved into a modern vaccine manufacturer and contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO). The company is notable for being the only influenza vaccine manufacturer in Asia certified by both the European Union Good Manufacturing Practice (EU GMP) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the*only human vaccine manufacturer in Taiwan operating under PIC/S GMP standards.

History

Adimmune traces its origins to 1965, when it was established as Kuo Kwang Serum and Vaccine Manufacture Co., Ltd. in northern Taiwan and collaborated with Japan's Kitasato Institute to produce early vaccines such as Japanese encephalitis and tetanus toxoid.

In 2001, the company was renamed Adimmune Corporation (ADIMMUNE, meaning Advanced Immunology).

By 2015, Adimmune's Fill and Finish Plant had received EU GMP certification; subsequently, in 2016, it gained PIC/S GMP validation from the U.S. FDA, establishing it as the only influenza vaccine-maker in Asia with those certifications.

Products and services

Adimmune manufactures seasonal influenza vaccines—including trivalent and quadrivalent formulations—and other human vaccines like Japanese encephalitis, tetanus toxoid, and purified tuberculin. The company also provides CDMO services using both egg-based and cell-culture platforms at its PIC/S GMP-certified facilities in Taiwan, with an annual capacity of tens of millions of doses.

Global recognition and partnerships

Adimmune has sought to expand its role in the global pharmaceutical and vaccine industry through international collaborations. Adimmune’s accreditation by EU and U.S. regulatory authorities enables it to supply high-standard vaccines both domestically and internationally. The company has entered strategic partnerships and CDMO agreements to manufacture for firms such as Sanofi Pasteur, Crucell, and others.

In January 2021, the company announced a partnership with South Korea’s largest ophthalmic drug manufacturer, SCD, to co-develop a biosimilar version of Eylea, an injection used to treat macular degeneration.

In August 2021, Adimmune signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with BD, a global leader in injection devices. The strategic alliance aimed to strengthen cross-border pharmaceutical cooperation and was described as an important step in Adimmune’s international expansion.

In May 2024, Adimmune signed a Standard Material Transfer Agreement 2 (SMTA2) with the World Health Organization (WHO) under the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Framework. The agreement allows contracted vaccine and pharmaceutical companies to obtain influenza virus strains from WHO in real time in order to accelerate the development of new influenza vaccines or antiviral drugs. At the time, 14 companies from Europe, the United States, and Asia had signed such agreements; Adimmune was the first Taiwanese manufacturer to do so.

Facilities

Adimmune operates modern PIC/S GMP-certified manufacturing plants, including both egg and cell-based production systems. The company’s Taichung facility supports pharmaceutical-grade filling, packaging, analytical testing, and quality control under global regulatory standards.

Controversies

In April 2025, Taiwanese media reported that a whistleblower alleged misconduct at Adimmune’s Tanzi facility in Taichung. According to the claims, in late July 2024, an employee did not place 120 laboratory mice into the designated animal room during a typhoon holiday, instead leaving them in a laboratory for three days. This reportedly led to contamination of the lab environment with rodent feces and urine, causing a strong odor. A second whistleblower further alleged that the same employee had previously instructed a vendor to leave laboratory mice in the open lobby area of a building entrance. Internal meetings at Adimmune reportedly classified these incidents as “minor oversights,” with no disciplinary measures taken and no follow-up decontamination of the affected areas.

See also

• Vaccine