Fraunhofer CMB awarded $4.395 million for H1N1 vaccine develompment
(Press release)
Fraunhofer USA Center for Molecular Biotechnology (CMB) announced that it has received a $4.395 million award from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop a vaccine against H1N1 influenza virus using its plant-based production platform. This will be the third round of funding from DARPA and follows on CMB’s successful optimization and feasibility studies completed in 2008 and a new, state-of-the-art cGMP pilot manufacturing facility completed at the end of 2009. This current funding will allow CMB’s H1N1 vaccine candidate to progress to Phase 1 clinical trials, therefore validating the utility of the technology for manufacturing products for use in humans. Fraunhofer USA CMB, a division of Fraunhofer USA, Inc., is a not-for-profit research organization whose mission is to develop safe and effective vaccines targeting infectious diseases and autoimmune disorders. CMB’s technology provides a safe, rapid and economical alternative for vaccine production.
