BioSante Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Amex: BPA) announced today that it has been awarded a subcontract valued at $658,207 for the development of anthrax vaccines for delivery via alternative routes of administration. The subcontract was awarded to BioSante by DynPort Vaccine Company LLC (DVC) in support of the U.S. Department of Defense Joint Vaccine Acquisition Program (JVAP).
This subcontract leverages the technology and expertise of BioSante to develop vaccines using alternative routes of administration, including nasal, oral and needle-free transcutaneous routes. Under the subcontract, BioSante will provide BioVant, its proprietary nanotechnology-based vaccine adjuvant and delivery system, and DVC will provide recombinant antigens to be used in potential vaccines against anthrax. The objective is to assess the immunogenic potential of BioVant when used in anthrax vaccines versus the immunogenic response of anthrax vaccines that use Alhydrogel as the vaccine adjuvant.
BioSante is responsible for developing formulations of BioVant with the anthrax vaccine antigens and will conduct immunization studies in animals to determine the immunogenicity of the resulting BioVant/antigen vaccines compared with an anthrax vaccine formulated with Alhydrogel.
"This program is an important step toward the development of novel vaccines to protect against anthrax and takes advantage of BioSante's work in alternative routes of administering vaccines and therapies such as insulin using our BioVant nanotechnology," said Stephen M. Simes, president and chief executive officer of BioSante. "This recognition of BioVant is further validation of the work our scientists have been conducting over the last several years and the value that has been created for our stockholders."
In June 2003, BioSante announced a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the U.S. Army's Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) for development of nanotechnology-based needle-free biodefense vaccines including anthrax, bubonic plague, staph and ricin. In February 2003, BioSante announced a CRADA with the U.S. Navy's Naval Medical Research Center to develop a nanotechnology-based vaccine for malaria.
