DENVER and NEW ORLEANS, Feb. 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Corgenix Medical Corporation , a worldwide developer and marketer of diagnostic test kits, and Tulane University, today announced a major extension of the collaborative effort to combat viral hemorrhagic fever (VHF), an effort that will generate an additional $800,000 in contract revenue for Corgenix over the life of the contract.
"This study will result in a fundamental understanding of the mechanisms of antibody detection and antibody mediated neutralization of Lassa virus," said James Robinson, M.D., Professor of Pediatrics at the Tulane University School of Medicine and Principle Investigator of the program. "This research has significant implications for the next generation of antibody based therapeutics against viral hemorrhagic fevers."
This is the third major award given to Tulane for Lassa virus research. Under the original two grants awarded in 2005 and 2009, the group developed and patented new recombinant proteins for Lassa virus and developed several viral detection products that have been deployed in Africa for clinical testing where most VHFs are endemic.
"This important research will save lives and help prevent this deadly disease. Boston University School of Medicine is pleased to be collaborating with such an esteemed group of researchers," said Thomas Geisbert, Ph.D., Associate Director of the National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories Institute at Boston University.
Because of the high case fatality rate, the ability to spread easily by human-to-human contact, and the potential for aerosol release, Lassa is classified as a BSL-4 (bio safety level 4 agent) and is included on the NIAID Category A select agents list of potential bio-terrorism threats.
Robert Garry, Ph.D., Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at the Tulane University School of Medicine, added, "We have been very pleased with the results of our development effort over the past five years. The diagnostic products have shown to be remarkably effective in clinical settings in Africa and will have a meaningful impact on the healthcare in that part of the world, but will also fill a critical gap in bioterrorism defense. Now under the new NIH award, we will move to the next level allowing us to better treat the disease, or ultimately prevent it altogether."
About Corgenix Medical Corporation
Corgenix is a leader in the development and manufacturing of specialized diagnostic kits for immunology disorders and vascular diseases. Corgenix sells over 50 diagnostic products through a global distribution network for use in clinical laboratories worldwide. In addition, the Company is active in the development of technology and products for emerging pathogens such as viral hemorrhagic fevers.
About Autoimmune Technologies, LLC
Autoimmune Technologies (New Orleans, La.) is a privately held biomedical company. It has licensed several breakthrough research discoveries from Tulane University School of Medicine and has made exciting discoveries of its own. Autoimmune is working to offer new diagnostic tests and new anti-viral therapeutics to the medical community based on this proprietary research.
About the Broad Institute
The Eli and Edythe L. Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard was founded in 2003 to empower this generation of creative scientists to transform medicine with new genome-based knowledge. The Broad Institute seeks to describe all the molecular components of life and their connections; discover the molecular basis of major human diseases; develop effective new approaches to diagnostics and therapeutics; and disseminate discoveries, tools, methods, and data openly to the entire scientific community. Founded by MIT, Harvard and its affiliated hospitals, and the visionary Los Angeles philanthropists Eli and Edythe L. Broad, the Broad Institute includes faculty, professional staff, and students from throughout the MIT and Harvard biomedical research communities and beyond, with collaborations spanning over a hundred private and public institutions in more than 40 countries worldwide. For further information about the Broad Institute, go to www.broadinstitute.org.
About The Scripps Research Institute
The Scripps Research Institute is one of the world's largest independent, non-profit biomedical research organizations, at the forefront of basic biomedical science that seeks to comprehend the most fundamental processes of life. Scripps Research is internationally recognized for its discoveries in immunology, molecular and cellular biology, chemistry, neurosciences, autoimmune, cardiovascular, and infectious diseases, and synthetic vaccine development. Established in its current configuration in 1961, it employs approximately 3,000 scientists, postdoctoral fellows, scientific and other technicians, doctoral degree graduate students, and administrative and technical support personnel. Scripps Research is headquartered in La Jolla, California with a second campus located in Jupiter, Florida. Research at Scripps Florida focuses on basic biomedical science, drug discovery, and technology development.
About Vybion, Inc.
Vybion (Ithaca, N.Y.) is an emerging biotechnology company with a proprietary biopharmaceutical drug pipeline and platform technology for human monoclonal antibody selection and affinity maturation. The company's contract division has developed over 150 recombinant proteins in multiple expression systems including 12 biologic drugs in various phases of clinical development.
Corgenix Medical Corporation
