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CBMX-By Mary Ann Milbourn Oct 28, 2005 (The Orange County Register - Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News via COMTEX) --International efforts to prevent bird flu from becoming a global threat may get some help from two Orange County companies.
Peregrine Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Acacia Research's CombiMatrix unit are ramping up efforts to develop and promote products that may help in the diagnosis and treatment of influenza, including the H5N1 avian flu strain that health officials fear could spread to humans in a worldwide pandemic.
Peregrine in Tustin has developed an anti-viral called Tarvacin that helps the body's immune system find and destroy infected cells. Newport Beach-based Acacia will be able to help health officials identify and keep up with mutations of the flu virus with a diagnostic system developed by its CombiMatrix unit.
The sudden advent of bird flu provided a rare opportunity for small, niche companies like Peregrine and CombiMatrix to get in on a piece of the action that typically goes to the big, deep-pocket pharmaceutical firms like Roche , which makes Tamiflu.
Peregrine and CombiMatrix, however, are still in the early stages of development and marketing, so it's unclear whether they will be able to capitalize on the opportunity.
Steven King, Peregrine's chief executive, said Thursday that he sees Tarvacin potentially working in conjunction with other anti-virals like Tamiflu to stop the bird flu. Tamiflu prevents the virus from replicating, while Tarvacin would sic the body's immune system on it.
"It could be a one-two punch," he said. "That's really the way a lot of viruses are being treated." Peregrine announced this week that it is working with the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to evaluate if Tarvacin can be used in the treatment of avian flu. NIAID officials confirmed Thursday that they are working with Peregrine, but would not elaborate. Peregrine said it is also stepping up its collaborations with private sector partners to speed the studies.
Tarvacin is an antibody that acts on a substance, called a phospholipid, on the outside of an infected or malignant cell membrane. It marks the cell, telling the body's immune system that there's a foreign body there that needs to be destroyed.
The drug is currently in initial human testing for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C. Previous studies showed that Tarvacin binds to six different virus families including influenza A and B. Avian flu is an influenza A virus.
Peregrine's current hepatitis C Phase 1 trial is due to be completed next year. Company officials could not give a timeline for how quickly testing could be completed if Peregrine gets the go-ahead for influenza trials.
The World Health Organization estimates 2 million to 7.4 million people could die if the virus becomes able to spread among humans.
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