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news.Siga Technologies, a company specializing in the development of pharmaceutical agents to fight bio-warfare pathogens, has received a $55 million contract from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, a component of the National Institutes of Health, and The Office of the Biomedical Advance Research and Development Authority, within the Department of Health and Human Services.
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According to the company, the grant was provided to support development of additional formulations and smallpox-related indications for ST-246, Siga’s lead drug candidate.
ST-246 is said to be a potent, non-toxic inhibitor of orthopoxviruses that is in advanced development efforts to obtain regulatory approval.
In contrast to Siga’s previously awarded and ongoing $16.5 million ST-246 development contract, this new funding enables the formulation and advanced development of a new ST-246 parenteral drug product as well as new ways to use the existing oral formulation of ST-246 to combat smallpox.
Eric Rose, Siga’s CEO, said: “This new contract will broaden the use and utility of ST-246 as an orthopoxvirus countermeasure. It paves the way for ST-246 to provide protection to a much larger portion of the population in the event of a smallpox attack.”