US Gov awards $250m botulinum contract to Resilience

Resilience subsidiary Ology Bioservices has been awarded a $250 million contract by the US DOD to develop a monoclonal antibody as a medical countermeasure to botulinum neurotoxins.

Under the terms of the deal, Ology Bioservices (acquired by San Diego-based contractor – National Resilience in April 2021) will advance the medical countermeasure (MCM) to the US Food and Drug administration (FDA), which will then be manufactured at commercial scale with stock distributed for military use.

The firm’s site in Alachua, Florida, will develop a monoclonal antibody (mAb) to countermeasure botulinum neurotoxins (BoNT) and is the US Department of Defenses’ (DOD’s) facility established specifically for the purpose of producing therapies and treatments to protect service members from biological weapons and natural threats.

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The US DOD classifies BoNT as a “Category ‘A’ threat.” A bacterium named Clostridium botulinum makes botulinum neurotoxins, which can affect nerves and cause muscle paralysis.

“We are proud to support the Department of Defense develop this important medicine to protect the warfighter from exposure to botulinum toxins,” said Rahul Singhvi, CEO of Resilience.

“As we all have seen with the COVID-19 pandemic, a country’s ability to quickly develop and manufacture new treatments for emerging threats is vital for national security. This project helps advance Resilience’s mission to enhance the safety of the country’s supply chain and ensure we are prepared for potential future health threats.”

The contract was awarded by the DOD’s joint program executive office for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear and there is currently no FDA approved treatment to act as a pre-treatment against BoNT.