02Oct
BioFactura is developing a Marburg therapeutic in close collaboration with the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID). Marburg virus (MARV) was first described in 1967 as the causative agent of a hemorrhagic fever illness that occurred in laboratory workers at a primate facility in Germany and Yugoslavia. Since its discovery, marburgviruses have caused at least 13 outbreaks of Marburg virus disease (MVD) in humans, primarily in sub-Saharan Africa.
Marburgvirus is classified as a Category A priority pathogen by the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) due to high case fatality rates and suspected weaponization by the former Soviet Union. While several individual mAbs and mAb cocktails specific for Ebola virus have been developed and tested, research dedicated for Marburgvirus-specific antibody immunotherapy development is currently lacking. There exists a tremendous void in the filovirus therapeutic arsenal in terms of Marburgvirus countermeasures, leaving us vulnerable to Marburgvirus infection with no way of actively treating or managing outbreaks.
Our medical countermeasure is aimed at addressing this void and providing an effective antibody-based immunotherapy against Marburgvirus, similar in approach to antibody-based immunotherapies that have proven efficacious against Ebola Zaire virus. Addition of this countermeasure to U.S. stockpiles would provide a scalable, safe, and effective drug to treat and protect both the warfighter and civilian.