Doom boom: Cel-Sci, Versar target terrorist-wary market
Sean Madigan Staff Reporter
Cel-Sci said today it will lend its expertise to a joint venture with a Spokane, Wash., biopharmaceutical company to develop and manufacture a faster test for detecting anthrax strains in humans.
The Vienna, Va.-based biotech that develops treatments to fight cancer says it will provide the research for the venture while Biomedex, will secure funding and manufacture the tests.
"Rapid tests to determine the presence of anthrax in the environment already exist," says George Coleman, Biomedex's president. "However, there is no rapid test for determining whether a person is infected with anthrax or not. Clearly, there is a need for a rapid test in humans. We hope that the special expertise of both organizations will allow us to create and bring to market such test quickly."
Company officials did not say when they expect to bring such a product to market.
News of the partnership sparked a jump in Cel-Sci's share price, pushing it up as much as 47 percent. The stock (Amex: CVM) later cooled off, but remained up about 20 percent, or 24 cents, to $1.50 a share.
Another local stock, Versar (Amex: VSR), got a lift this morning after it announced it has rolled out a nationwide emergency response service for biological, chemical and industrial incidents. Shares were up 21 cents, or about 5 percent, to $4.25 a share, after the company made available monthly fee-for-service response plans to help companies respond to possible terrorist incidents.
Shares of the Springfield, Va.-based counterterrorism consulting firm's stock have more than doubled since the Sept. 11 attacks |
