The small business innovation research (SBIR) grant will support research and development efforts to genetically engineer mosquitoes that can enhance Sanaria’s whole-parasite malaria vaccine production process.
David O’Brochta, director of the Insect Transformation Facility at University of Maryland Biotechnology (UMBI), said: “The partnership between Sanaria and UMBI supported by this SBIR grant is an ideal example of public-private partnership in the development of groundbreaking technology.
“It presents an extraordinary opportunity to exploit the capabilities of our Insect Transformation Facility in pursuit of a goal of enormous biomedical importance.”