GenVec, Inc. (Nasdaq: GNVC) announced today that SAIC-Frederick, Inc. has signed a contract with GenVec for the development of influenza and HIV vaccines in support of the Vaccine Research Center (VRC) of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This four-year contract has a total value of over $22 million if all options are exercised. Over the next year, GenVec will receive approximately $2.6 million.
Under the contract, the vaccines would be comprised of genetic material supplied by the VRC and adenoviral vectors supplied by GenVec.
"This new contract supports important efforts in HIV and influenza. Given the heightened concerns about influenza, this contract is timely and we look forward to applying our novel technology to this problem," stated Dr. Paul Fischer, GenVec's President and CEO. "In particular, we are looking forward to working on a universal flu vaccine, which has the potential to protect against seasonal and pandemic outbreaks."
Work under this contract will include generation of HIV vaccine candidates, generation of a universal flu vaccine candidate, process and assay development for manufacture of vaccine candidates for clinical testing, and continued support of the HIV vaccine candidates currently in clinical testing.
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