SIGA Receives $16.5 Million from the NIH to Advance Development of Its Smallpox Drug Candidate, SIGA-246
Wednesday October 4, 5:05 pm ET
Total Funding Awards Received by SIGA since August 2, 2006 Now Exceeds $27 Million
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--SIGA Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: SIGA - News) today announced the receipt of a 3 year, $16.5 million contract from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the National Institutes for Health (NIH), to advance the development of SIGA-246, the company's smallpox drug candidate. The award will support the development of SIGA-246 through the preparation and filing of a New Drug Application with the Food and Drug Administration. The receipt of this award brings the total amount of funding commitments the company has received from various sources since August 2nd to over $27 million.
"We are grateful for the continued commitment of the NIH to the development of SIGA-246," said Dr. Dennis E. Hruby, Chief Scientific Officer of SIGA. "The funding we have received from the NIH, as well as their advice and guidance have been critical to the success of our smallpox drug program to date. We look forward to continue working with the NIH as SIGA-246 advances forward."
In July 2006, SIGA announced the successful completion of its first human clinical safety trial. The preliminary results indicated that SIGA-246 is safe and well tolerated in human volunteers at all tested orally administered doses.
SIGA believes that SIGA-246 is the most advanced smallpox treatment currently in development. It represents a new approach to achieve a novel, orally active, antiviral therapeutic to smallpox. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention classified smallpox as a Category A agent. It is considered one of the most significant threats for use as a bio-warfare agent due the fact that people in the United States have not been vaccinated against it since 1972. Smallpox is very easily transmitted from person to person, and has high mortality rates (30-60%) with 90% morbidity. At present there is no approved treatment for smallpox that can be safely administered to the general population without significant risk of adverse reactions. "We are committed to continue the development of SIGA-246 and hope to provide a solution to this urgent bio-security need," commented Dr. Hruby. |
