ROCKVILLE, MD., March 6, 2008—Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (NYSE: EBS) announced that today it completed the acquisition of a group of anthrax monoclonal antibodies from AVANIR Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AVNR), including Avanir’s lead product candidate, AVP-21D9.
AVP-21D9 is a human monoclonal antibody product candidate that is being developed as an intravenous treatment for patients who present with symptoms of anthrax disease following exposure to Bacillus anthracis. In non-clinical studies, this candidate demonstrated an ability to protect animals challenged with a lethal dose of inhaled anthrax spores. AVP-21D9 is being developed with funding support from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health (NIAID), including a grant to establish a cGMP manufacturing process and to test efficacy in additional inhalation studies.
“The acquisition of Avanir’s monoclonal anthrax antibodies rounds out our anthrax countermeasure program nicely. In addition to our FDA-approved product, BioThrax? (Anthrax Vaccine Adsorbed), which is indicated for pre-exposure prevention of anthrax in individuals at high risk of exposure to anthrax spores, we are developing a polyclonal anthrax immune globulin therapeutic, which is a human plasma-derived product candidate. Now, as a result of this acquisition, we have another anthrax therapeutic in our product portfolio – a new monoclonal anthrax antibody product candidate that has performed well in proof-of-concept studies,” said Fuad El-Hibri, chairman and chief executive officer of Emergent BioSolutions. “This transaction reflects our ongoing commitment to develop a full portfolio of countermeasures to strengthen our country’s preparedness in the event of future anthrax attacks.”
