Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccine development subsidiary of French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi, said Tuesday it would officially launch its new quadrivalent influenza vaccine in South Korea next month.

Sanofi’s four-strain flu vaccine, Vaxigrip Tetra, is able to protect against four strains of influenza -- two influenza strains (H1N1, H3N2) and two influenza B strains (Yamagata, Victoria).

According to Sanofi Pasteur, Vaxigrip Tetra is an expanded version of Vaxigrip, its three-way flu vaccine currently marketed in Korea via its partner Handok Pharmaceutical.

Vaxigrip Tetra’s effectiveness safety has been proven in a large clinical program held in 24 countries around the world including Korea, said Sanofi Pastuer Korea General Manager Baptiste de Clarens.

The introduction of Sanofi’s quadrivalent flu vaccine is slated to ramp up competition in Korea’s four-strain flu vaccine market this year, Baptiste said.

In 2016, six companies, including GlaxoSmithKline, Green Cross and SK Chemical, competed in the category. This year, Sanofi, Dong-A ST and Boryung Biopharma have joined the mix with similar products.

Based in Lyon, Sanofi Pasteur currently supplies influenza vaccines to some 150 countries worldwide, making up more than 40 percent of the flu vaccines circulated globally.

By Sohn Ji-young (jys@heraldcorp.com)