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The Towne strain is an attenuated, or weakened, form of human CMV whichwas developed for potential vaccine applications by renowned vaccinologistStanley Plotkin, M.D., a member of Wistar's research faculty from 1960 to 1991and co-author of the definitive medical text Vaccines. Dr. Plotkin currentlyis executive advisor to sanofi pasteur, the vaccine division of sanofiaventis, professor emeritus of virology at The Wistar Institute, and professoremeritus of pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania. Among his manycontributions to vaccine research while at Wistar, Dr. Plotkin developed theRubella vaccine now in common use worldwide. He also developed experimentalvaccines against polio and varicella and collaborated on vaccines againstrabies and rotavirus.
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"In a number of vaccine studies over the years, the Towne strain hasdemonstrated the ability to elicit targeted immune responses against CMV,"said Dr. Plotkin, "and it was recently used in a prime-boost combination todemonstrate the memory immune response elicited by DNA vaccination. Continuedadvances in the fields of vaccines and immunology may create new opportunitiesfor commercialization. I am pleased to see the Towne strain advance in thehands of a capable vaccine development company such as Vical."
Russel E. Kaufman, M.D., president and CEO of the Wistar Institute, added,"We are delighted to have Vical as a corporate partner who has the expertiseand resources to pursue the application of this Wistar technology."
Vical's President and Chief Executive Officer, Vijay Samant, said, "CMV isan important target for Vical, and the Wistar technology adds to ouralready-strong intellectual property in this field. As we approach thecompletion of enrollment in our CMV vaccine trial for hematopoietic celltransplant recipients, we view the Towne strain as an excellent opportunity toexpand our options to address the congenital CMV market segment, which mayinclude our Vaxfectin(TM) adjuvant, vaccine delivery devices, and prime-boostvaccination."
Stuart Adler, M.D., Professor of Pediatrics at Virginia CommonwealthUniversity, is currently conducting a Phase 2 / 3 clinical trial of a Townestrain vaccine in up to 180 CMV-seronegative women with children in daycare toevaluate its safety and effectiveness in preventing CMV infection. The trialis sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases(NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Vical is separatelyconducting a Phase 2 trial of a DNA-based CMV vaccine in up to 80 donors andrecipients undergoing hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) procedures, and upto 80 additional HCT recipients, to evaluate its safety and effectiveness inreducing the occurrence rate of clinically significant CMV levels.
About CMV
CMV is a herpes virus that infects more than half of all adults in theUnited States by age 40, and is even more widespread in developing countries.While a healthy immune system typically protects an infected person againstCMV disease, it rarely succeeds in completely eliminating the infection, andthose whose immune systems are not fully functional are at high risk of CMVproliferation, potentially leading to severe illness or death. Those atheightened risk include transplant patients who take immunosuppressive drugs,and fetuses and newborns of mothers who first become infected duringpregnancy.
CMV infection affects 30 to 60 percent of the patients undergoing varioustransplant procedures, causing transplant rejection, serious illness and evendeath if untreated. Expensive antiviral drug therapy is use
