Adenovirus vectors compriseing HSV-2 antigens will be evaluated with the $600,000 two-year award.
GenVec received a phase I SBIR grant from the NIAID to support development of vaccines for HSV-2, one of the viruses implicated in genital herpes. The funding, valued at $600,000 over two years, will go toward work being conducted at GenVec, the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Institute at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and the University of Washington.
Research under the grant will focus on testing adenovirus vectors containing HSV-2 antigens. These vaccine candidates will be evaluated for their ability to generate CD8 T-cell responses in mice and nonhuman primates.
“There is considerable laboratory and clinical evidence that suggests that host T-cell immune responses are critical both in influencing the spread of and the severity of HSV-2 infection,” points out Rick King, the firm’s svp of R&D. “GenVec’s adenovector technology is ideally suited for vaccine strategies that induce strong T-cell mediated immune responses.”
