Jul 29, 2009
A Halifax bioscience company working on the development of a cancer vaccine has received a $260,000 boost from the National Research Council.
The grant will allow ImmunoVaccine Technologies Inc. to expand its research on a needleless vaccine that has the potential to stimulate a long-lasting immune response in a single dose.
Marc Mansour, vice-president of research and development, said he expects the company will begin a clinical trial involving humans this fall. The cost for the trials is expected to exceed $5 million and focus on breast, ovarian and prostate cancers.
The federal money is to enhance research and develop a pipeline of additional therapeutic cancer and infectious disease vaccines.
Private investment in the Halifax biotech operation cleared the $11-million mark in May after the company orchestrated an interim round of financing for $1.5 million from private equity investors. In an announcement in June, the company announced it was intending to go public to raise the money needed to begin human clinical trials.
It is working with Rhino Resources, a capital pool company. As part of a reverse takeover agreement, ImmunoVaccine Technologies will become a publicly traded company on the TSX Venture Exchange.
The company, incorporated in 2000, was spun off from research conducted at Dalhousie University. It has received $6.8 million in financial support from the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency since 2003.
In addition to the new funding, the council is offering technical and business advisory services.
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