RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C., Oct. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- AlphaVax, a North Carolina-based vaccine company developing products for infectious diseases, biodefense and cancer, today announced its support of S. 1873, legislation introduced this week by U.S. Senator Richard Burr to help the U.S. government partner with the private sector to develop drugs and vaccines against biological and chemical threats to the United States, including new biodefense and pandemic influenza vaccines.
If passed, Burr's Biodefense and Pandemic Vaccine and Drug Development Act of 2005 would establish a new government agency with new authority and resources to support the rapid development of vaccines and drugs to protect the U.S. population against either deliberate, accidental, or natural biological, chemical, and radiological threats. The bill, introduced on October 17th, has already been approved and sent to the full Senate.
Commenting on the bill, Peter Young, President and CEO of AlphaVax, said, "Many of the promising technologies that could offer medical solutions to these critical public health threats are being developed by young companies like AlphaVax. Senator Burr's legislation offers indispensable support to help these companies sustain their involvement beyond early development to the point where new products are available and ready for emergency use."
AlphaVax receives substantial support from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop new HIV, biodefense, SARS and pandemic influenza vaccines using their proprietary alphavaccine technology. These grants only support early product development, noted Young; Senator Burr's legislation would help bridge the significant funding and development gap between this early stage and final products.
AlphaVax has just announced the receipt of a $3.3 million NIH grant for a new smallpox vaccine. Earlier this year, the company also received a $6.5 million grant for the development of vaccines for influenza, including potential pandemic strains. The Company has presented pre-clinical data demonstrating that their alphavaccines induce protection against influenza in multiple animal models including mice, chickens and ferrets, most recently last month at the Second European Influenza Conference in Malta. The Company is currently planning to begin clinical trials of an influenza vaccine in 2006.
In addition, AlphaVax is working with a number of academic and industry partners on vaccines for important diseases like herpes and human papilloma virus (the principal cause of cervical cancer), as well as vaccines that can be used to treat different types of cancer. AlphaVax is located in Research Triangle Park and currently employs 70 people. It also manages a GMP manufacturing operation in a leased vaccine production facility in Lenoir, North Carolina.
AlphaVax, Inc.CONTACT: Bolyn Hubby, Ph.D., Communications Manager of AlphaVax,+1-919-595-0341
Web site: http://www.alphavax.com/
