Vical Receives NIH Grant for an Immunotherapeutic Herpes DNA Vaccine; Herpes Experts at University of Washington and University of Texas to Conduct Preclinical D...(of medicine in the Division of Allergyan...),Health

Date:4/3/2008

of medicine in the Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the University of Washington School of Medicine, will lead the mouse research phase of the grant. He said, "I believe that technologies such as pDNA vaccines, which can contribute to priming and boosting CD8 T-cell responses to HSV-2, have the best chance of changing the natural history of established HSV-2 infection, potentially improving symptoms, lesions, shedding, and perhaps even transmission."

The $2.0 million Phase II STTR grant supplements the $0.3 million awarded to Vical in 2005 for the HSV-2 vaccine program under a Phase I STTR grant from the NIAID, which partially funded Vical's initial development of the HSV-2 vaccine.

About HSV-2

HSV-2 is a member of the herpesvirus family, and is the leading cause of genital herpes worldwide. In the United States, HSV-2 infects some 1.6 million people per year, with approximately 500,000 of those suffering from disease symptoms. At least 40 million people in the United States are infected with HSV-2. Even higher infection rates are evident in developing countries, with further complications in people also infected with HIV. All HSV-2 infections are permanent and result in periodic virus shedding.

There is currently no approved vaccine for HSV-2. Although antiviral regimens have become a standard of care, their inconvenience, cumulative cost over the years and potential for drug resistance further underscore the need for safe, new approaches to reducing HSV-2 lesions, shedding, and transmission.

Estimated costs of treating HSV-2 in the United States alone are close to $1 billion, primarily for drugs and outpatient medical care. Additional indirect costs from HSV-2 infection, such as lost work hours, are more than $200 million annually in the United States.

About Vical

Vical researches and develops biopharmaceutical products based on its patented DNA delivery technologies for the prevention and treatment of
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SOURCE Vical Incorporated Copyright©2008 PR Newswire. All rights reserved

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