Siga Technologies has won a new contract for its oral antiviral drug, Tpoxx, worth up to $10.7 million from the U.S. Department of Defense as the country stocks up on the treatment amid a monkeypox outbreak.
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JYNNEOS is administered beneath the skin (subcutaneously) as two doses, four weeks (28 days) apart. For individuals 18 years of age and older determined to be at high risk of monkeypox infection, the EUA now allows for a fraction of the JYNNEOS dose to be administered between the layers of the skin (intradermally).
The company plans to deliver by next year the order for the IV treatment, which would be a vital option for patients unable to swallow the oral pill as monkeypox symptoms include rashes and blisters in the mouth.
To deal with the rapidly rising monkeypox cases in the country, experts from United States health regulatory agencies have announced plans to conduct a clinical trial to more thoroughly assess the safety and efficacy of TPOXX (tecovirimat) as an antiviral in patients with monkeypox.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Wednesday it plans to make the rapidly spreading monkeypox disease a nationally notifiable condition.
Over the weekend, the World Health Organization declared the monkeypox outbreak, so far documented in more than 70 countries, a “public health emergency of international concern [PHEIC].” Here are the initiatives some biopharma companies are taking to contain monkeypox.
The approval comes just one day after the World Health Organization issued a high-level alert declaring the rapidly spreading monkeypox outbreak as a global health emergency.
The World Health Organization says “sustained transmission” of monkeypox worldwide could see the virus begin to move into high-risk groups, such as pregnant women, immunocompromised people and children.
The European Union’s drug regulator said on Tuesday it has started a review to extend the use of Bavarian Nordic’s (BAVA.CO) smallpox vaccine to prevent monkeypox disease as well.
The European Union is working on a common purchasing agreement for vaccines and antivirals against monkeypox, as cases of the viral disease usually endemic to Africa gather steam in Europe and beyond.
