UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

SCHEDULE 13D

(Amendment No. 1)

Under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

VACCINEX, INC.

(Name of Issuer)

Common Stock, Par Value $0.0001 per share

(Title of Class of Securities)

918640 103

(CUSIP Number)

Maurice Zauderer

c/o Vaccinex, Inc.

1895 Mount Hope Ave

Rochester, New York 14620

Telephone: (585) 271-2700

(Name, Address and Telephone Number of Person Authorized to Receive Notices and Communications)

November 23, 2022

(Date of Event which Requires Filing of this Statement)

If the filing person has previously filed a statement on Schedule 13G to report the acquisition that is the subject of this Schedule 13D, and is filing this schedule because of §§240.13d-1(e), 240.13d-1(f) or 240.13d-1(g), check the following box  ☐.

Note: Schedules filed in paper format shall include a signed original and five copies of the schedule, including all exhibits. See §240.13d-7 for other parties to whom copies are to be sent.

The information required on the remainder of this cover page shall not be deemed to be “filed” for the purpose of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (“Act”) or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section of the Act but shall be subject to all other provisions of the Act (however, see the Notes).

CUSIP No. 918640 103

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CUSIP No. 918640 103

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Item 1. Security and Issuer

The initial Schedule 13D, dated January 31, 2022, was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 10, 2022 (the “Initial Schedule 13D”) and relates to the common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (“Common Stock”), of Vaccinex, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Issuer” or “Company”) with principal offices located at 1895 Mount Hope Avenue, Rochester, New York 14620. The Initial Schedule 13D is amended with respect to the matters set forth below by this amended Schedule 13D filing (this “Schedule 13D”), which is being filed to report a greater than 1% increase in the percentage of shares beneficially owned by the Reporting Persons. Unless otherwise indicated herein, there are no material changes to the information set forth in the Initial Schedule 13D.

Item 2 of the Initial Schedule 13D is hereby amended and restated in its entirety as follows:

Item 3 of the Initial Schedule 13D is hereby amended by the addition of the following information:

On November 23, 2022, Vaccinex LLC purchased 1,511,430 shares of Common Stock of the Issuer at a purchase price of $0.5293 per share, pursuant to a private placement agreement entered into with the Issuer on November 18, 2022, in Rochester, New York. The aggregate amount paid by Vaccinex LLC for the shares of Common Stock it acquired was approximately $800,000.00. Vaccinex LLC used personal funds in connection with this transaction. All other securities reported herein by the Reporting Persons were previously obtain in connection with the Issuer’s initial public offering, exercise of options, or purchase of securities. Previous purchases of the securities reported herein was made by the Reporting Persons with personal funds or working capital, as applicable.

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Item 4. Purpose of Transaction

Item 4 of the Initial Schedule 13D is hereby amended by the addition of the following information:

Vaccinex LLC and the Issuer entered into a Stock Purchase Agreement dated November 18, 2022 (the “Stock Purchase Agreement”), pursuant to which Vaccinex LLC purchased 1,511,430 shares of Common Stock from the Issuer at a purchase price of $0.5392 per share, resulting in a total purchase price of $799,999.90 In the Stock Purchase Agreement, the Issuer states that it intends to use the net proceeds from the sale of the Common Stock to fund the ongoing development and clinical trials of pepinemab, the adopted name for VX15, the Issuer’s lead product candidate, which is being developed for treatment of non-small cell lung cancer, osteosarcoma, melanoma and Huntington’s disease. The Issuer will also use such proceeds for working capital and general corporate purposes. Vaccinex LLC acquired the Common Stock reported herein for investment and to support the Issuer’s research and development activities. For additional information regarding the Stock Purchase Agreement, see Item 6. All of the other securities reported herein were acquired for investment purposes.

Item 5. Interest in Securities of the Issuer

Item 5 of the Initial Schedule 13D is hereby amended and restated in its entirety as follows:

Item 6. Contracts, Arrangements, Understandings or Relationships With Respect to Securities of the Issuer

Item 6 of the Initial Schedule 13D is hereby amended by the addition of the following information:

Vaccinex LLC and the Issuer entered into a Stock Purchase Agreement dated November 18, 2022 (the ” Stock Purchase Agreement”), pursuant to which Vaccinex LLC purchased 1,511,430 shares of Common Stock from the Issuer at a purchase price of $0.5293 per share, resulting in a total purchase price of $799,999.90. The closing under the Stock Purchase Agreement occurred on November 23, 2022. The Stock Purchase Agreement contains, among other provisions, certain representations, warranties and agreements by Vaccinex LLC customarily included in agreements for the issuance and sale of securities without registration under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act”), including representations and warranties by Vaccinex LLC with respect to its status as an “accredited investor” within the meaning of Rule 501(a) of Regulation D under the 1933 Act, acknowledgment by Vaccinex LLC that the shares of Common Stock issued pursuant to the Stock Purchase Agreement constitute “restricted securities” under the 1933 Act, and agreement by Vaccinex LLC to sell the Common Stock issued pursuant to the Stock Purchase Agreement only in accordance with either the registration requirements of the 1933 Act or an exemption therefrom, and that certificates evidencing the Common Stock purchased pursuant to the Stock Purchase Agreement will bear a legend reflecting such resale restrictions. The Issuer made certain representations and warranties to Vaccinex LLC with respect to, among other matters, its business, its authorization of the issuance of the Common Stock, the compliance in all material respects at the time of filing of the periodic reports and other documents that the Issuer has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) under the 1933 Act or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, as applicable, and the rules and regulations thereunder, the absence (except as disclosed in such SEC filings) of any material adverse change affecting the Issuer, and the preparation and presentation of the Issuer’s financial statements included in its SEC filings. The Stock Purchase Agreement also contains certain customary conditions to Vaccinex LLC’s obligation to purchase the shares of the Issuer’s Common Stock, including the absence of any stop order or suspension of trading imposed by Nasdaq, the SEC or any other governmental or regulatory body with respect to public trading in the Common Stock.

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The foregoing descriptions of the Stock Purchase Agreement is qualified by the full text of such agreement, which is an exhibit to this Schedule 13D.

Item 7. Material to Be Filed as Exhibits

The following document is filed as an exhibit to this Schedule 13D.

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SIGNATURE

After reasonable inquiry and to the best of our knowledge and belief, I certify that the information set forth in this statement is true, complete and correct.

Dated: November 28, 2022