OraSure Gets U.S. Contract to Hurry Development of Zika Test
August 23 2016 - 6:00PM
Dow Jones News
OraSure Technologies Inc. said Tuesday that it had been awarded
a U.S. government contract to speed the development of its oral
test kits for the Zika virus.
The Bethlehem, Pa., maker of oral tests for HIV and Ebola said
the six-year contract was for upward of $16.6 million with a
biomedical research agency attached to the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services.
The initial commitment is for $7 million with options of up to
$9.6 million to finance evaluation of further product enhancements,
and clinical and regulatory services, OraSure said.
"We believe the availability of an accurate rapid Zika antibody
test will be a valuable tool to address current and potential
future outbreaks," said Douglas A. Michels, OraSure's chief
executive. "[The funding] will enable us to complete clinical and
other activities required to obtain regulatory approvals for this
product."
OraSure said it would provide an update on guidance and timing
during its November earnings call. Shares of the company rose 9.3%
in after-hours trading.
The company's test kits for HIV and Ebola use mouth swabs to
collect saliva. Orasure claimed its tests for Zika will be of
greater use than the examination of tissue or blood samples because
the virus can be detected earlier with its technique.
The Zika virus, identified in Uganda in 1947, has spread in
Latin America since its 2014 arrival in Brazil before making its
way north. The virus has been spreading in Florida.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, as of Aug. 11 there were 529 cases of pregnant women
possibly infected with the Zika virus, which can infect a fetus,
possibly causing birth defects including microcephaly, an
abnormally small head associated with improper brain
development.
Write to Ezequiel Minaya at ezequiel.minaya@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 23, 2016 17:45 ET (21:45 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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