The Army has transferred safe vaccine strains to a small commercial biotechnical research company that will use the strains to identify improved treatments for tropical diseases. The Army Medical Research and Materiel Command at Fort Detrick, Md., licensed the strains to Integrated BioTherapeutics of Germantown, Md.
The strains include Chikungunya, Rift Valley Fever, Junin, and Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis. These infectious viral diseases endanger military personnel in foreign assignments. In addition, they have the potential to be "weaponized," presenting an emerging threat to both the U.S. military and homeland security. All four diseases are devastating to the rural poor in developing countries.
Integrated BioTherapeutics is using the Army vaccine strains for screening of therapeutic drug candidates. The goals are the development of effective treatments for the four diseases and the identification of broad spectrum antiviral activity of drug candidates. "There is a high need for broad spectrum antiviral drugs, especially in the biodefense industry. We help collaborators uncover hidden value in their product pipeline by screening drug candidates for antiviral activity," said Rob Galioto, Director of Business Development at Integrated BioTherapeutics. Pharmaceutical industry interest in tropical disease treatment and prevention has also recently been heightened by a new Federal Drug Administration (FDA) initiative. The FDA has introduced a voucher program to reward drug companies that develop new products that treat and prevent infectious diseases endemic in the developing world.
TechLink, a Department of Defense partnership intermediary, facilitated the license agreement between the Army and the company.
More info: Chandra Morris, TechLink, 406-994-7702, cmorris@montana.edu
