A Maryland biotechnology firm has received a $22 million contract from the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to pursue a vaccine to protect against the Ebola and Marburg viruses, the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy reported yesterday (see GSN, Oct. 3).

The new contract covers preclinical work, but Integrated BioTherapeutics has said it could later receive an additional $43 million in federal funds for conducting clinical tests and preparing to manufacture a vaccine against the potential bioterrorism agents.

The company has already developed a version of the treatment effective in animals by working with the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases at Fort Detrick, Md., the firm said.

'This is a significant step forward in our mission to improving public health and developing countermeasures for biodefense,' Javad Aman, the firm’s president and chief scientific officer, said in a statement. 'The contract will fund a major portion of the pre-clinical and clinical activities required to confirm and refine the activity in animals and verify the activity in humans” (Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy release, Oct. 8).