GigaGen Inc. announced today it has entered into a contract with the U.S. Department of Defense’s (DOD) Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense (JPEO-CBRND) to demonstrate the utility of its first-in-class recombinant human polyclonal antibody discovery platform against biological threats of interest to the DOD.
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Sept. 15, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- GigaGen Inc., a biotechnology company advancing transformative antibody drugs for immune deficiencies, infectious diseases and checkpoint resistant cancers, and a subsidiary of Grifols, announced today it has entered into a contract with the United States Department of Defense’s (DOD) Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense (JPEO-CBRND) to demonstrate the utility of its first-in-class recombinant human polyclonal antibody discovery platform against biological threats of interest to the DOD.
The JPEO-CBRND awarded GigaGen this Prototype Agreement under the SPARK program, an idea incubator that fuels innovation and problem solving by providing funding for potentially transformative projects. As part of this award, GigaGen will demonstrate its platform’s capabilities by producing recombinant human hyperimmune products that target DOD-priority pathogens, including a recombinant polyclonal antibody drug designed to neutralize botulinum neurotoxins A and B, with high potency and military utility. The agreement will also allow the JPEO-CBRND to evaluate GigaGen’s platform against additional biological threats, and support functional testing, manufacturing, and clinical evaluation of recombinant polyclonal drugs that meet specific performance objectives.
“We are proud to be working closely with the DOD to develop new and improved medical countermeasures against naturally emerging and intentional biological threats,” said Carter Keller, a senior vice president at Grifols and head of GigaGen. “Our novel technology platforms enable first-in-class recombinant polyclonal antibody drugs that combine the speed and scale of recombinant antibody manufacturing with the effectiveness of broadly neutralizing polyclonal antibody therapies. We look forward to using our platform to demonstrate the rapid response to pathogenic toxins like botulinum neurotoxins A and B, as well as other high-priority pathogens.”
About Grifols
Grifols is a global healthcare company founded in Barcelona in 1909 committed to improving the health and well-being of people around the world. A leader in essential plasma-derived medicines and transfusion medicine, the company develops, produces and provides innovative healthcare services and solutions in more than 110 countries.
Patient needs and our ever-growing knowledge of many chronic, rare and prevalent diseases, sometimes life-threatening, drive our innovation in plasma-based therapies and other biopharmaceuticals to enhance quality of life. Grifols is focused on treating conditions across a broad range of therapeutic areas: immunology, hepatology and intensive care, pulmonology, hematology, neurology and infectious diseases.
A pioneer in the plasma industry, Grifols continues to grow its network of donation centers, the world’s largest with over 400 across North America, Europe, Africa and the Middle East and China.
As a recognized leader in transfusion medicine, Grifols offers a comprehensive portfolio of solutions designed to enhance safety from donation to transfusion, in addition to clinical diagnostic technologies. We provide high-quality biological supplies for life-science research, clinical trials, and for manufacturing pharmaceutical and diagnostic products. In addition, the company supplies tools, information and services that enable hospitals, pharmacies and healthcare professionals to efficiently deliver expert medical care.
Grifols, with more than 27,000 employees in more than 30 countries and regions, is committed to a sustainable business model that sets the standard for continuous innovation, quality, safety, and ethical leadership.
In 2021, Grifols’ economic impact in its core countries of operation was EUR 7.7 billion. The company also generated 141,500 jobs, including indirect and induced.
The company’s class A shares are listed on the Spanish Stock Exchange, where they are part of the Ibex-35 (MCE:GRF). Grifols non-voting class B shares are listed on the Mercado Continuo (MCE:GRF.P) and on the U.S. NASDAQ through ADRs (NASDAQ:GRFS).
GigaGen is advancing transformative antibody drugs for immune deficiency, infectious diseases and checkpoint resistant cancers by leveraging industry-leading, single-cell technologies. Its novel technology platforms uniquely capture and recreate complete immune repertoires as functional antibody libraries. This approach has enabled the creation of first-in-class recombinant polyclonal antibody therapies for the treatment of infectious diseases. In addition, GigaGen’s lead oncology asset, GIGA-564, is an anti-CTLA-4 monoclonal antibody that has demonstrated improved anti-tumor efficacy in vivo through a unique mechanism of action.
For more information, please visit www.grifols.com or www.gigagen.com.
Media Contacts:
Monica Rouco Molina, Ph.D.
LifeSci Communications
mroucomolina@lifescicomms.com
Tel: +1-929-469-3850
Grifols Press Office
media@grifols.com
Tel. +34 93 571 00 02
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