Posted on 02/24/2006 2:00:12 PM PST by radar101
Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: HEPH, News) announced Friday it has submitted its formal proposal in response to the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) solicitation seeking treatments for acute radiation syndrome, or ARS.
HEPH shares rose 6.8 cents to $6.50 in moring trading.
Hollis-Eden responded to the RFP with the goal of securing an advance purchase contract for its ARS drug candidate, Neumune, under Project BioShield. Hollis-Eden said it has met or exceeded the criteria for eligibility as set forth by DHHS in the RFP.
Hollis-Eden said it believes Neumune offers a number of distinct advantages that could deliver additional value to the government.
Neumune, the company said, has demonstrated in animals the ability to mitigate other potentially life-threatening components of ARS, including thhe loss of platelets and anemia.
According to Hollis-Eden, Neumune has increased survival rates in large numbers of rhesus monkeys exposed to high-dose radiation, even in the absence of critical supportive care such as platelet transfusions and antibiotics.
In Phase I studies with healthy human volunteers, Neumune has generated statistically significant increases in neutrophils and platelets that were comparable in magnitude to the increases in neutrophils and platelets seen in unirradiated monkeys. The results suggest that benefits seen in irradiated monkeys should translate to irradiated humans.
Hollis-Eden believes Neumune may offer the first practical medical countermeasure that can be forward deployed and administered on a self-administered or out-patient basis in major cities across the U.S. in the event of a nuclear incident.
Forward deployment of a practical medical countermeasure for ARS is critical, the company said. According to the medical literature, the detonation of a 10-kiloton nuclear device in a major American city would expose hundreds of thousands of people to the life-threatening effects of ARS. At the same time, current treatment recommendations for ARS call for victims to be hospitalized for weeks and treated with growth factors, antibiotics and platelet transfusions.
Hollis-Eden said administration of therapies requiring supportive clinical care in a hospital would not be available to the vast majority of those exposed to radiation following a nuclear event due to the lack of available hospital beds. In New York State, for example, on average there are only 20,000 to 25,000 hospital beds available on any given day. The lack of medical care would mean platelet transfusions, which are critical to survival from ARS under current treatment regimens, would only be available to a very small percentage of victims of such an attack due to storage issues.
It would also be extremely difficult to successfully evacuate a significant number of victims of such an attack due to the practical limitations of existing transportation systems, and to anticipated damage to transportation and communications infrastructure.
The net result of these factors is that only a small percentage of victims in a nuclear mass casualty scenario could expect to receive the recommended care. The rest are currently without any effective treatment options. According to the 2000 U.S. Census, there are 24 metropolitan areas in the U.S. with a population of greater than 2 million people. Each of these areas could represent a potential terrorist target, according to Hollis-Eden.
"It is a privilege to respond to this initial step by the Department of Health and Human Services to procure medical countermeasures for ARS," stated Richard B. Hollis, chairman and CEO of Hollis-Eden. "With the increasing geopolitical concerns about the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the stated goal of terrorist organizations to use such weapons on American soil, we believe it is imperative that the government do everything in its power to prepare the nation for such an event.
"In addition to responding to this initial RFP," added Hollis, "we look forward to the possible opportunity to work with DHHS, the Department of Defense, and state and local governments under potential subsequent procurements with the goal of protecting larger numbers of civilians, first responders and our troops from the life threatening effects of ARS."
Just the Facts: Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals Inc.
4435 Eastgate Mall, Suite 400
San Diego, CA 92121
Phone: 858-587-9333
Fax: 858-558-6470
Web: http://www.holliseden.com
I'm not certain what your retort/comment is supposed to mean. 'Humor' must be used in a public forum with care.
I am a retired radiation worker with ~3 REM occupational exposure.
I am also a disgusted no-longer high volume donor to the Red Cross. I donated blood products twice per month for more than ten years (10 y x 12 mo/yr x 2 donations/mo x 2 needle holes/donation) ~500 wounds. Then the ARC decided to prohibit legally armed citizens over my protests which were ignored. Scroom.
So it is somehow special to some.
What my comment meant was this:
Someone EXPECTS a radiation incident HERE.
You can fill in the how, why and where.
As to the A R C, they were found to be diverting and embezzeling funds here. No more trust, you know. If I donate--I know where it is going!
Again no. Don't expect a 'radiation incident' here. YOU learn about 'specific activity' to know why it's either a hyperbolized triviality or a full blown bomb. If it was easy then it would have been done. It was easy then everybody would do it. A 'dirty bomb' would contaminate not radiate. It's like dog-shit contamination on your shoe radiates the stink.
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