GAITHERSBURG, Md., March 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Iomai Corp. , a biopharmaceutical company, received a $1.4 Million award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for the continued development of its immunostimulant (IS) needle-free patch to extend the availability of existing stocks of influenza vaccine in the case of a pandemic. The award from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases is the second installation of a two-year, $2.9 Million grant first announced in January 2005. The grant was awarded under the government's biodefense initiative: "Cooperative Research for the Development of Vaccines, Adjuvants, Therapeutics, Immunotherapeutics, and Diagnostics for Biodefense and SARS."
The patch is based on the company's transcutaneous immunization (TCI) technology, which leverages the skin's unique immune properties as a vehicle for vaccine delivery and enhanced stimulation of the immune system. The IS patch is designed to be applied at the injection site at the time an adhesive bandage would typically be applied. It works by activating immune cells to increase the immune response to the injected vaccine. The increased immune responses may allow for the use of far smaller doses of injected vaccine to achieve the needed levels for protection. The patch offers the opportunity to be stockpiled in advance of a pandemic event.
"We believe Iomai's ongoing research into this IS patch represents a key step toward solving the issues of large-scale immunization in case of a public health or biodefense emergency, and NIH's support is invaluable in helping us advance this dose-extending approach," said Stanley C. Erck, President and Chief Executive Officer of Iomai. "The U.S. capacity to produce sufficient quantities of vaccine to protect the U.S. population is a small fraction of what it needs to be, and our approach has the potential to expand the effective supply of vaccine by ten-fold or more."
A Phase I study of a pandemic influenza vaccine by the NIH found that a large two-dose regimen of injectable vaccine was required to stimulate what is believed to be an adequate immune response. Because of the difficulty of manufacturing and administering large doses of traditional injectable vaccine, dose-extending options such as the Iomai patch could be a crucial element of a mass vaccination strategy.
About Iomai Corporation
Iomai Corporation discovers and develops vaccines and immune system stimulants, delivered via a novel, needle-free technology called transcutaneous immunization (TCI). TCI taps into the unique benefits of a major group of antigen-presenting cells found in the outer layers of the skin (Langerhans cells) to generate an enhanced immune response. Iomai is leveraging TCI to enhance the efficacy of existing vaccines, develop new vaccines that are viable only through transcutaneous administration and expand the global vaccine market. Iomai currently has four product candidates in development: three targeting influenza and pandemic flu and one to prevent E. coli-related travelers' diarrhea. For more information on Iomai, please visit www.iomai.com.
Some matters discussed in this press release constitute "forward-looking statements" that involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements include statements about IOMAI 's ability to stimulate stronger immune responses, use of the IS patch to reduce doses of vaccine needed to achieve protective levels, it's potential to be stockpiled in advance, TCI's potential importance in national health and biodefense applications, the potential broad applicability of TCI, and the expectation regarding low risk of systemic side- effects. Applicable risks and uncertainties include, among others, that IOMAI may not be able to enroll sufficient numbers of patients in clinical trials to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of its product candidates; that clinical trials may not demonstrate safety and efficacy; that IOMAI may be unable to obtain the regulatory approvals necessary to conduct additional clinical trials or to market its product candidates; that development costs may exceed expectations; that IOMAI may fail to adequately protect its intellectual property or may be determined to infringe on the intellectual property of others; and the risks identified under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's prospectus dated February 1, 2006 and filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. IOMAI cautions investors and others not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. You are encouraged to read the Company's filings for a discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties which are filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, available at www.sec.gov.
These statements speak only as of the date of this document, and IOMAI undertakes no obligation to update or revise the statements.
Iomai Corp.CONTACT: Russell P. Wilson, Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officerand General Counsel of Iomai Corporation, +1-301-556-4478, orinvestors@iomai.com; or Jennifer Larson of WeissComm Partners, Inc.,+1-415-946-1074, or jlarson@weisscommpartners.com, for Iomai Corporation
Web site: http://www.iomai.com/
