AmpliPhi, U.S. Army in Global R&D Pact

AmpliPhi BioSciences has entered a Collaborative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command (USAMRMC) and the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR) to develop and commercialize bacteriophage therapeutics to treat Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections. The initial indication will be wounds and skin infections from S.aureus, which accounts for 30% of surgical site infections.
 
AmpliPhi will retain global regulatory and commercial rights to all products developed under the agreement. USAMRMC will gain access rights to any products developed and WRAIR will be responsible for cGMP production of the lead Staphylococcus product, AmpliPhage-002 for Phase I and II trials. Financial terms were not disclosed.
 
Philip J. Young, chief executive officer of AmpliPhi, said, “This collaboration is a significant partnership for our company. It combines AmpliPhi’s expertise in the discovery and development of bacteriophage-based therapies with the U.S. Army’s scientific and clinical research for the development of phage therapies for treatment of bacterial infections. It will serve to expedite the development, testing and approval of new treatment modalities. Working together I believe we will be able to improve the care of patients with these serious, often life threatening, infections.”
 
Dr. Kenneth A. Bertram, principle assistant for acquisition at USAMRMC, said, “Multidrug-resistant bacterial infections are a significant challenge for U.S. military, as they are for the rest of the world. The Army has had a long-standing interest in the potential of innovative therapies to address this challenge. This bacteriophage collaboration is an important step in the battle to find much needed alternative therapies to treat these infections.”