The initial contract was awarded through the transformational medical technologies initiative of the US Department of Defense’s Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA).
Under the terms of the contact, DTRA funds are available to cover testing and development efforts totaling up to $22.3 million over a 24-month base period, with $5 million appropriated immediately for the current federal fiscal year ending September 30, 2008.
The remainder of the $22.3 million in funding is expected to be appropriated over the remainder of the two-year base period ending June 29, 2010. The contract can be extended beyond the base period to cover up to $44.4 million in funding over the five-year contract period. Work and funding under this contract are expected to begin immediately.
According to Peregrine, the DTRA biodefense contract award has the potential to create long-term value for the company, including generating future potential revenues from government stockpiling to combat bioterrorism threats.
In the near-term, funding from this initiative will also allow Peregrine to use data and experience obtained from the development and scale-up of bavituximab to support its ongoing clinical development programs.