Integrated BioTherapeutics Inc., a Rockville, Md.-based a biotechnology company focused on the discovery of novel vaccines and therapies for emerging infectious diseases, has been awarded a $6.6m grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).
The funds will be used to develop a vaccine that can protect against all ebolaviruses. The research is led by Co-Principal Investigators Dr. M. Javad Aman, Chief Scientific Officer at IBT, and Drs. Erica Ollmann Saphire and William R. Schief at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI), La Jolla, California.
The team of investigators also includes Dr. Kartik Chandran at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York; Dr. John M. Dye at the US Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID), Frederick, Maryland; Dr. Xiangguo Qiu lab at Public Health Agency of Canada, Winnipeg, Manitoba; and Dr. Dorit Hanein at Sanford Burnham Prebys (SBP) Medical Discovery Institute in La Jolla, California.
Using innovative approaches for immunogen design, the investigators will use EBOV glycoprotein as a basis for the rational design and production of pan-ebolavirus vaccine candidates to promote broadly protective immune responses that target vulnerable structural sites shared among all ebolaviruses. During the five-year funding period, the team will first examine the immune response and protection of mice and guinea pigs to select highly active, engineered immunogens. Next, the selected immunogens will be tested again in rodents and then in nonhuman primates to identify promising candidates for advanced preclinical development. Upon completion of this research, IBT anticipates transitioning the most promising candidates toward advanced development, including clinical testing and licensure by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).