Md. Company Competes for Anthrax Vaccine Contract

The Maryland-based biotechnology firm PharmAthene has obtained U.S. rights to a British-produced anthrax vaccine and plans to compete for a contract to make a next-generation treatment for the Strategic National Stockpile, the Washington Post reported today (see GSN, Oct. 11, 2007).

The federal government hopes to acquire a new anthrax vaccine requiring fewer shots than the current six-dose treatment produced by Emergent BioSolutions.

PharmAthene Vice President Eric Richman said his company’s clinical expertise and familiarity with U.S. regulators give it an advantage over the British firm in competing for the contract, which could be worth over $400 million.

The federal government in 2006 canceled an $877.5-million deal with California-based VaxGen to produce a new anthrax vaccine (see GSN, Dec. 4, 2007).

Emergent BioSolutions believes the U.S. government should seek a wider variety of countermeasures instead of pursuing a single next-generation vaccine, spokeswoman Tracey Schmitt said (Michael Rosenwald, Washington Post, March 24).

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